Our City XO
by xHalosandwings
Summary: Hollywood is a small town, where drama is frequent and fast, however there is a select group of people that experiences more drama than most. Maryse/Alicia/Eve/Maria
1. Maryse: Welcome To The City

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This is the first chapter to my new series 'Our City XO'.  
Normally I only have one fic on the go, however I have **millions** of ideas at the moment, I need to get some of it down!  
This fic is inspired by the Hills, but hopefully it's a little bit better!  
The basic layout is that each of the four divas (Maryse, Eve, Alicia, Maria) has a chapter, and there's a group chapter afterwards. This first chapter is Maryse.  
Please **review** and tell me what you think of it!

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**  
WELCOME TO THE CITY  
Maryse**

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"Do you want us to put this in the van, Miss Ouellet?"

Jason, one of the delivery men, held up a piece of artwork from Maryse's bedroom. It would probably be wrong to call Jason a man, as he barely looked out of puberty.

"Merci beaucoup, sweetie." The French-Canadian beauty purred, pushing her oversized sunglasses back down over her eyes.

Maryse knew the delivery men were watching her every move in delight, so she decided to put on a little bit of a show.

She bent down to loosen the strap on her left high heel, and as she came up, she flipped her long blonde hair through the air, all the while being admired by the delivery men.

Maryse knew she was sexy, and she certainly knew the men thought so too.

"I think we're all packed up." Jason approached her cautiously.

He was so cute, Maryse thought to herself, like a little lamb.

"I'll follow behind you in my car." Maryse leaned back against her sleek black Mercedes Benz.

"That's a sweet car you got there." Jason commented.

"It was a present." Maryse patted the hood.

"Boyfriend?"

"Ex."

"Looks like you got a pretty good deal."

"You bet I did. I got rid of his lazy ass, and replaced it with a hot car and an even hotter wardrobe."

As much as he tried to focus on doing his job, he often found himself getting lost somewhere between Maryse's pouty pink lips, and her seductive French accent.

"I'll only be a minute." Maryse winked, walking back towards the apartment block.

She'd spent many good times in that apartment, and a small part of her was sad to leave.

Maryse walked into the reception area, and sat down on one of the plush leather sofas, waiting for the manager, Richard, to meet her.

"Handing in your keys, Miss Ouellet?" Richard approached her from behind the desk.

"I have to eventually." Maryse sighed, pulling the key out of her Chanel handbag and placing it in Richard's hand.

"It's been good having you here, Miss Ouellet."

"It's been even better being here. But seriously, Richard, I've been here for three years now, I think it's about time you start calling me Maryse."

"Goodbye, Maryse." Richard shook her hand.

Maryse gave him one final wink, before sauntering out for one last time.

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'_Walkin' in LA  
__Walkin' in LA, nobody walks in LA'_

Maryse wasn't much of a 'singing' person, but when Missing Persons came on the radio, she couldn't help but sing along to the infectious chorus.

Driving past the Hollywood sign, Maryse stopped singing, and took the time to smile.

The city of Angels was her new home. A new city meant a new Maryse... but she knew some things would never change.

The beautiful model had always lived in Montreal, born and raised, but always dreamt of living in sunny L.A.

When a chance to transfer to her modelling agency's L.A base occurred, Maryse knew she couldn't refuse the offer.

"'_Deevar Grove'." _Maryse pulled into her new street, and read the name of the road sign aloud.

Since the first time she saw Deevar Grove, Maryse fell in love with it. All the houses had a definite Mediterranean feel to them, with tiled roofs and ivy climbing up the walls, bedrooms with balconies and swimming pools in the back garden.

"Ooh oui." Maryse pulled into the driveway and smiled up at her new home.

"This is a nice place you've got here." Jason hopped out of the van and approached Maryse.

"I know."

"You've got some pretty neighbours too." Jason pointed at the house across the street.

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At a glance, they were three girls, all squeezed together around a small, black, iron table. When Maryse took a closer look, she couldn't help but agree with Jason; they were all very pretty.

The first girl was sat between the other two on the table. She was a striking redhead, with cat-like features and a red Popsicle in her mouth. Her red hair was pulled out of her face, and she had on a pair of faded denim jeans and a leopard-print vest top. She wasn't wearing any shoes, and her toenails were painted blank.

The girl to her right was a beautiful Latina, with loose, wavy brown hair and a perfect smile. She was wearing a navy blue mini-dress, with gold gladiator sandals, however she managed to make a simple outfit look ridiculously glamorous.

The final girl, to the left of the redhead, had perfect caramel skin, and a wild mane of untamed curls. She was working the casual look too, in a pair of black shorts, a pink bandeau top and a pair of furry boots.

"If you don't go say hi, I sure will." Jason interrupted Maryse's thoughts.

Maryse didn't have to go say hi, as the redhead was already walking towards her, flashing a beautiful smile.

"Hey, you just moved in, right?" The redhead smiled, still sucking on her Popsicle.

Maryse nodded.

"Come sit with us. I'm Maria, by the way."

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Maria grabbed Maryse by the wrist and pulled her across the street, over to the black table where the other two girls were sat.

"You want a popsicle?"

Maryse shook her head.

"Your loss" Maria shrugged and sat down on the Latina's lap, allowing Maryse to have her own chair. "Sit down."

"Thanks."

"So the girl I'm currently crushing by sitting on is my best friend, and housemate, Eve."

Eve waved from behind Maria.

"And this is my other best friend, Alicia."

"I live two doors down from you, so if you need anything, just stop by." Alicia smiled. "So where did you move from?"

"Montreal."

"Oh yeah, I can tell from the French accent." Eve said. "Can you speak much French?"

"It's my first language."

"French is so sexy." Maria giggled. Maryse got the feeling that Maria was 'the ditzy one'. "So what do you do?"

"I'm a model." Maryse replied. "What do you guys do?"

"I teach dance in the gym downtown, and I sometimes do TV work." Eve explained. "Maria is a freelance fashion stylist, who is a great fashion designer as well, and Alicia co-owns a wedding planning company."

"So young." Maryse commented quietly.

"Pardon me, ladies." Jason approached the girls. "Miss Ouellet, where do you want us to put all your stuff?"

"I'll come help you out." Maryse stood up. "I'd better get going. It was nice to meet you all."

"Me too actually, I've got to get ready for work." Alicia stood up. "I'll walk you... across the street?"

The girls laughed.

"I have a feeling you're going to fit in around here." Alicia winked, before walking back towards her own house.

_See you around, neighbour. _

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_Hope you enjoyed it! _

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	2. Eve: An Overdue Invite

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**AN OVERDUE INVITE  
Eve**

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"5, 6, 7, 8! Arms round the head and turn a-round. El-bows in and kneeees! Kneeees! Jump and jump and head... bob... head... bob! Finish!"

No, Eve Torres wasn't going crazy. She instructed her dance class to the tune of the music.

"Okay, that's time up! Thanks guys! That was awesome!" Eve was working on the choreography for Ciara's upcoming tour, and therefore she had to teach the dance troupe a series of different numbers.

As Eve gathered up her belongings and put them back in her gym bag, she smiled to herself.

She loved her job. Dancing was her first love, and her passion. There was nothing she loved more than creating dances and seeing them come to life.

"They really picked that up straight away." Eve's co-choreographer and good friend, Layla El, came over to the bench where she began gathering up her own belongings.

"They sure nailed it." Eve agreed, pulling her hair out of the bun it had been tied in. "Days like this make me love my job."

"You love your job anyway." Layla laughed. "So where are we going for lunch?"

"I don't know if I'm gonna do lunch, I might just hit the gym downstairs." Eve replied, flinging her bag over her shoulder.

One thing everybody knew about Eve was that she had unlimited amounts of energy. She loved being active, whether it was dancing, or any other form of sport, she loved it.

"You have the most rock hard body of anyone I know. One trip to the Olive Garden isn't going to kill you." Layla commented. "Besides, I'm having a craving for a Panini."

"Sorry." Eve shrugged. "But hey, if they let you take it away, you can always bring one back for me."

"Wait a minute," The wheels began turning in Layla's head. "I think I know why you're going to the gym downstairs. Randy works as a trainer every Wednesday lunchtime, right? I knew you had a crush on him!"

"Say it a little louder, why don't you?" Eve blushed. "I don't think Randy heard you!"

"I knew you had a crush on him!"

Okay, so Eve did have a bit of a 'thing' for the gorgeous trainer, Randy Orton. Eve couldn't decide what it was about him that was so enticing. The piercing blue eyes? The chiselled body? The tattooed arms?

Eve wasn't sure, but all were very appealing options.

"Maybe I have a _little _crush on him." Eve admitted.

"So what're you gonna do about it?"

"Um, nothing?" Eve was confused.

"And why would you do a thing like that?!" Layla exclaimed.

The London-born beauty could be a bit over-dramatic sometimes.

"You guys are both ridiculously athletic, ridiculously hot..."

"Okay, I get it!" Eve interrupted. "But what would I say to him?"

"Invite him to your barbeque!"

That weekend, Eve and Maria were holding a barbeque slash pool party at their home for all of their friends. It had been planned for weeks, and a lot of work had gone in to make sure it was the party of the century.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go talk to him!"

"I thought you wanted to get lunch?" Eve smiled.

"Lunch can wait. Playing matchmaker is so much more fun." Layla slipped her arm through Eve's, and the pair made their way down to the gym.

* * *

As Eve and Layla finally entered the downstairs gym, Eve's stomach was doing somersaults. As she saw Randy, the somersaults only sped up.

"Maybe I'll talk to him later..." Eve began walking away.

"Go!" Layla pushed Eve into the path of Randy.

This didn't, however, work out as Layla planned. Eve caught her foot in the wire of a nearby treadmill, sending Eve flying straight into the arms of a very quick, Mr Orton.

"You ought to be more careful, Eve." Randy smiled down at Eve.

_He knows my name!_ Fireworks went off before the Latina's eyes.

"Are you alright?" He helped her stand up, so she wasn't in his arms anymore.

"Yeah, fine." Eve brushed herself down. "Sorry about that, Layla was just being... well, Layla." Eve looked over at her friend, who was hiding her face behind her gym bag.

"Randy laughed. "So what's up? Are you coming to work out?"

"I had a treadmill session in mind." Eve smirked.

"With all the dancing you do, I'm surprised you even want to work out." Randy commented.

"I love being on my feet." Eve shrugged. "I hate just being... sat around. I get bored and shifty."

"I'm the same." Randy agreed. "That's why I do what I do."

Eve had forgotten that Layla was watching her every move.

"So what're you doing this weekend?" Randy asked.

_Was Randy asking her out? She couldn't believe Randy was asking about her weekend plans.... _

"Eve?"

"Steaks." _Shit. _

Eve realised that she hadn't said anything for about 20 seconds, and all she could think of was that she promised Maria she'd swing by the grocery store to pick up some steaks for the barbeque.

"My roommate Maria and I are having a barbeque, pool-party kind of thing this weekend, and I promised I'd get some steaks." Eve explained. "According to Maria, we're looking for the three 'B's; beer, bathing suits and... Well, we haven't worked out the third B yet."

"Sounds like my kind of party." Randy laughed.

"You should come." Eve saw an opening. "I mean, if you're not doing anything else. You can bring some friends, because otherwise you might not know people, which may be a little..."

"I'd love to come." Randy realised Eve was nervously babbling. "Besides, how could I turn down the possibility of seeing you in a bikini?"

"Oh, so that's why you want to come?" Eve laughed. "I live at number 4, Deevar Grove, so just swing by around lunchtime."

"Wow. You must be rich."

"Not really." Eve winced. "Well, I'd better get going."

Eve began walking away, until she heard Randy call her name. "Eve!"

"Yeah?" She turned around.

"Will there be a boyfriend coming this Saturday?" Eve couldn't believe he just asked that.

"Nope, I'm single." Eve replied.

"Good." Randy winked, before turning around and walking away.

* * *

"Well, that went well." Eve smiled, walking towards Layla.

"Just call me Cupid." Layla pinged her imaginary love-bow.

"I'd rather call you Layla." Eve began walking out of the gym.

"Where are you going?" Layla asked, following her friend. "Are we going to the Olive Garden? Or The Ivy? We could totally get some great seats outside..."

"Sorry, Lay, but I have some steaks to buy." Eve smiled.

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_Hope you enjoyed! Please review! XO  
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	3. Alicia: Business And Pleasure

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**BUSINESS AND PLEASURE  
Alicia**

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Arriving in her office, Alicia dropped her black Fendi handbag on top of her desk and flopped down onto one of the couches.

Every wedding planner's office needs a comfy couch, and when choosing hers, Alicia made sure it gave out the perfect level of comfort and practicality.

"Any messages?" Alicia asked her co-worker, Tiffany, who was punching something into her computer at the front desk.

"We got the invites through for the Copeland/Guerrero wedding." Tiffany held up a small white box, which she brought over to the sofa where Alicia was.

* * *

Alicia and Tiffany had been best friends since kindergarten, and were now business partners.

The two began their wedding planning business at the tender age of nineteen back when they lived in sunny Tampa, Florida.

Both singlehandedly organised one of their best friend's weddings and received great accolades for their work.

The pair decided that perhaps college wasn't for them. Alicia pulled out of her marine biology major in college, and moved to California with Tiffany, where the pair set up their business.

The pair instantly hit success, when organising the wedding of a '_Days of Our Lives_' actress, which was featured in _OK! _Magazine.

From then on, Terrell-Fox wedding planning became one of the most sought after wedding companies in not only Los Angeles, but in California as a whole.

Both Alicia and Tiffany brought their different skills to the company. Alicia was the creative, design force behind them, whereas Tiffany was more involved with the business aspect.

Despite their different styles, both were often described as mavericks in what they did, however neither one shied away from this title.

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"Why have the invites been sent here?" Alicia took the white box off of her friend and began flicking through about 200 invites.

"Vickie and Adam have been out of L.A this weekend, so they asked if they could be delivered here." Tiffany explained. "I think Vickie's coming here this afternoon to pick them up."

"Who's Adam?" Alicia wrinkled up her nose.

"Um... her fiancée!" Tiffany laughed.

"I wouldn't know, I've only ever met Vickie." Alicia put the invites down on the table.

"Yeah, Adam stays out of the wedding planning and leaves it up to Vickie."

* * *

Alicia stood up and walked towards the cafetière and began making herself a cup of coffee.

"Late night last night?" Tiffany asked.

"Hitting up Area until 1am may not have been the best idea." Alicia smiled. "I wish you could've come! Are you feeling better now?" Tiffany had called up at 7pm the previous night saying that she couldn't come out because she'd been ill.

"Oh totally." Tiffany smiled. "Jack and I really wanted to come, but we went out for dinner, and had lobster, and both of us felt really ill afterwards. It was definitely food poisoning."

Jack, referring to Jack Swagger, Tiffany's boyfriend.

"So who went out last night?"

"Well, it was me, Maria and Eve to begin with, then Eve called up Layla who brought along some of their dancer friends."

"Any guys out last night?"

"Not for me. Maria met a guy, though."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah. Actually he's..."

Alicia was interrupted by the sound of the office phone ringing. Tiffany hopped out of her seat and picked up the phone.

"Hello?... Are you serious?.... Is there nothing they can... I'll be right there." Tiffany put down the phone.

"Who was that?"

"You know the McMahon-Helmsley wedding? Stephanie's at Monique Lhuillier right now, and the wrong dress has been fitted."

"That's terrible." Alicia muttered.

"I know." Tiffany picked up her handbag. "I've got to get there right now. Can you hang around to give these invitations to Vickie?"

"Can't Savannah do that?" Alicia referred to the girls younger assistant. "Where is Savannah, anyway?"

"Day off." Tiffany rolled her eyes. "Just stick around, and I'm sure Vickie will be here soon.

* * *

Turns out this whole 'sticking around' business wasn't too bad for Alicia.

Since she'd arrived at the office that morning, she'd had three cups of coffee, read through a copy of _Marie Claire_ cover to cover, and sent an order out to _Sprinkles Cupcakes_.

_Not a bad day at the office_, Alicia smiled.

Just as Alicia was licking the topping off of her Peanut Butter Chocolate cupcake, her attention was distracted as the door clicked open.

Alicia was pleasantly surprised at what she saw.

He was about six five, with shoulder-length blonde hair and sunglasses down over his eyes. He had a definite rockstar look about him, in his dishevelled jeans, Converses and check t-shirt.

"Hey." He said, walking over to the couch. "I'm Adam Copeland. Vickie's fiancée."

_You've got to be kidding. _Alicia thought to herself. _Who'd have thought Vickie was such a cougar? _

"I'm here for the..."

"Invitations!" Alicia held up the box and handed them to Adam. "We haven't met, I'm Alicia."

She held out her hand for Adam to shake, which he did.

"Usually it's Vickie who sorts out this wedding stuff." Adam explained, rifling briskly through the invites. "So you're the chick that my wife is wasting all our money on?"

"No, I'm the chick that's making sure your wife has the wedding of her dreams." Alicia corrected.

"Point taken." Adam sat down on the couch next to Alicia.

Despite the fact Adam was being rude to her; Alicia couldn't help but sense the chemistry between them.

* * *

"So what do you do around here all day?"

"Plan weddings." Alicia stated, very matter-of-factly.

The truth was, there was so much involved with her career that she honestly didn't have the time to tell him.

"But as of now, it's my lunch break. So if you don't have any more questions, I have plans for lunch at the Ivy."

And that was no lie. Before she left for work that morning, Maryse approached her and asked if she'd like to go out for lunch, to which Alicia accepted.

More friends never hurt anyone.

"The Ivy?" Adam laughed.

"Yes, The Ivy. Is that a problem?"

"That place is such a chick restaurant."

"Well, in case you hadn't noticed, I am a chick." Alicia signalled at her breasts. "Besides, have you ever been to The Ivy?"

"I don't need to go to know it's a chick restaurant."

"Well, why don't you come along and see for yourself?"

"Are you asking me on a date?" Adam laughed again.

"No. Besides, my friend Maryse will be there." Alicia smirked. "And in case you've forgotten, you're engaged. I don't mix business and pleasure."

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"It's Alicia, right?" Adam asked, as he got into the passenger seat of her car.

"Yep."

"I like you already, Alicia."

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_Hope you enjoyed! XO_

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	4. Maria: The Unnamed Ex

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**THE UNNAMED EX  
Maria**

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"I know guys like a girl who shows a little skin, but that's taking it a little far." Eve smirked as she stuck her head around Maria's bedroom door and saw her best friend in a pair of wet-look leggings and a black bra.

"I can't decide what top to wear." Maria signalled onto the bed, where a selection of tops lay. "What do you think?"

"You're a stylist, you should be good at this kind of thing."

"I style other people, not myself."

"This one's cute." Eve held up a red leopard print waistcoat-style top.

"I made it the other day." Maria held the top up against her.

"Wear that." Eve came and sat down on Maria's bed. "I barely got to see you last night at Area. You spent the whole night with that guy..."

"John." Maria smiled, at the sound of her possible new boyfriend's name.

"Tell me all about him." Eve pulled her knees up so she could rest her chin on them.

Eve and Maria met about two years prior when the two were introduced through mutual friends. The girls had an instant connection, and eventually bought a house in Hollywood together.

In the words of Maria _'There are best friends, but then there are __**best**__ friends. That's Eve.'_

"Well, we met a couple of nights ago at Les Deux, but we didn't get much time to speak because he was on a date with this other girl. Turns out things didn't work out between them, and we happened to bump into each other again at Area, and hit it off. Oh, he's friends with that Randy guy you like."

"How did you know I liked Randy?" Eve blushed. She'd never told Maria that she liked Randy.

"Layla called and told me." Maria rolled her eyes.

Layla was lovely, but there was nothing she loved more than playing messenger.

"But he's coming to the barbeque, which is awesome! I can't wait to meet him." Maria smiled.

"So tell me more about John!"

"Well, he's an actor..."

"Wait!" Eve held up a hand. "He's not... John Cena? Is he?"

"Yeah! Have you guys met?"

"Maria, have you been living under a rock? He's John Cena! The huge action movie star! _12 Rounds_? _The Marine_? Does this mean anything?"

"Not really." Maria bit her lip.

"Well, just tell him I _loved _12 Rounds." Eve rolled her eyes.

In the words of Eve's mother _'That girl's a couple of cookies short of a cookie jar'. _

* * *

"I love the lighting in this place." Maria commented.

"I thought the red lighting was a little porn star-ish." John crinkled up his nose.

"John!" She laughed, slapping him across the chest.

"One of the guys told me it was a great 'date restaurant'." John replied as he pulled Maria's chair out for her.

"Well, I like it." Maria nodded her appreciation at the waiter, who handed her a menu.

"Now, you're not one of those girls who only order salads are you?" John asked, as he and Maria browsed the menus of _Ketchup_.

"No way! I like my food." Maria exclaimed. "Why, is that something you're into?"

"_No way!_" He imitated. "I like a girl with an appetite."

"Speaking of appetites, I'm having a barbeque at my house this weekend." Maria slipped into the conversation. "I think Randy's coming along and I'd love it if you would too."

"Is that with Eve?"

"Yeah. Did Randy tell you about her?"

"Yeah. I think he's really into her." John replied. "Besides, I can never say no to a barbeque."

"You're a Hollywood actor. Aren't you supposed to be super healthy?"

"Hell no. Wanna know my secret vice?"

Maria nodded.

"Cookies."

"Cookies?" Maria giggled. "Big Hollywood tough action guy likes cookies? Do you have them with a glass of milk?"

"That's the only way." John winked.

"I'll make sure we have a full stash of cookies, just for you, Mr Cena."

"You'd better." John laughed. "I'll be expecting some now, Miss Kanellis."

* * *

"Is that you, Ria?"

When Maria came in the house, she found Eve sat in their living room sprawled out on the sofa in her PJs, watching Glee and eating a bowl of Chicken Caesar salad.

"Glee?" Maria laughed, sitting down on the sofa next to her friend.

"I love this show!" Eve laughed, however she turned down the volume and held out her bowl. "Chicken salad?"

"I'm full." Maria held her stomach.

"So tell me about the date." Eve crossed her legs and sat facing Maria.

Maria smiled. "You know how first dates can be really awkward? It wasn't like that at all. He's really funny, and a real gentleman."

"Did he pull your chair out for you?"

"Yes!"

"That's a true sign of a gentleman." Eve commented, putting her bowl on the coffee table. "You know _he_ never would have done that."

"Eve..."

"Ria, you're my best friend. I'm just looking out for you." Eve used the nickname that only Maria, and sometimes Alicia, called the redhead. "I don't want you to get hurt again."

"Eve! For the first time since _him, _I'm actually going on dates with guys, and enjoying myself." Maria twiddled with the chunky ring on her finger. "I'm happy."

"That's all I want to hear."

Maria stood up and yawned.

"Tired?"

"Yeah. I think I'm gonna get some shut eye." Maria replied, making her way up the stairs. "I'll see you in the morning, sweetie."

"Sweet dreams." Eve replied. "Oh, Ria?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you kiss him?"

"I don't kiss and tell." Maria put her fingers over her lips, however she allowed herself to nod at Eve, giving her friend a subtle hint.

* * *

Maria decided to take a long hot bath before going to bed. She let the hot water rush over her, and the sound of _The Script _came out of her iPod speakers.

Just as she closed her eyes and felt herself falling to sleep, she heard her cell phone bleating on the bathroom counter.

Maria jumped out of the bath and wrapped herself up in a fluffy white towel.

"Who the hell is that?" She muttered to herself, opening her message inbox.

_Had a great time tonight, see you Saturday – John X_

Maria changed into her favourite pair of pyjamas; they were pink with lots of Piglets on. She tied her hair back in a ponytail and put an exfoliating facemask on her face.

_If only John could see me now! _

Maria picked up her cell phone and began punching into it.

_Me too! Can't wait till Saturday – Maria X_

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Once the facemask had been washed off, and Maria felt suitably tired, she got into bed, however not before rooting around in one of the drawers of her bedside table; until she found the picture she was looking for.

"Maybe I'm finally over you." Maria muttered, stroking at _his_ face.

She put the picture back in the drawer and allowed herself to fall asleep.

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_Hope you enjoyed! XO_


	5. Drama Returns

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**DRAMA RETURNS**

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"Now you look cute." Eve replied, as Maria came through the patio doors at about half ten, after hours of deciding what to wear.

After deciding the sequined bikini top might be a little trashy, Maria eventually came to the conclusion of wearing a frilly black bikini with a zebra print dress/top over it.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue; it was the perfect day for a barbeque.

"Anyone home?" The back gate of the house opened, and in came Randy and two guys Maria guessed were Randy's friends.

"Hello hotties." Maria whispered to Eve. "They look like Abercrombie models!"

Eve winked at her friend and went over to give Randy a hug. "What's up guys?"

"This is Ted and Cody, and they are pretty handy when it comes to operating a barbeque." Randy laughed. Eve couldn't help but notice how cute Randy looked in his jeans and white shirt.

"Magic hands." Ted held out his hands and kissed each one individually.

"God I hope you're joking." Maria laughed. "I'm Maria, is it okay if I shake one of the 'magic hands'?"

"Your house is awesome." Cody commented, running over to the outdoor seating area and lying down on one of the sofas.

"Make yourself at home. Randy, did you teach these guys manners before you let them out of their cages?" Maria smiled sarcastically. "Why don't you both help me out inside while we leave the lovebirds alone?"

"Maria!" Eve blushed.

"You can thank me later!" Maria said, before leading Ted and Cody inside.

* * *

Just an hour later, the party was in full swing. It seemed that the whole of Hollywood had turned up in Eve and Maria's garden looking for a good time.

"Thank you for coming along to help out." Eve threw a can of beer at Randy, who was sat down with Ted and Cody in the seating area. "I really appreciate it."

"Thank _you_ for inviting me. I'm having a great time." Randy winked, opening up the can. "Beer, barbeques and bikinis; what more could a guy ask for?"

"I do jujitsu y'know."

"You never fail to surprise me!" Randy signalled for Eve to come sit over on his lap. "And you know I'm only kidding."

"You better be." Eve warned, however she went and perched on his knee. "God, I feel like I'm in Santa's Grotto."

Randy laughed. "I'd really like to see you again."

Eve smiled and nodded. "I'd like that."

"Whoa, who's the chick Miz brought?" Cody exclaimed. "She is smokin'."

"Will you boys excuse me for a moment?"

Eve wanted to give Randy a blindfold, as coming through the garden gate was Mike 'Miz' Mizanin, hand in hand with Maryse.

* * *

"Have you seen who Maryse has showed up with?" Eve asked Maria, who was in the kitchen with John.

"This is Eve, by the way." Maria introduced the pair, completely ignoring what Eve said.

"I'm a big fan." Eve held out her hand for John to shake. "But, seriously, have you seen?"

"Seen what?" Alicia came into the kitchen.

"Who Maryse showed up with?"

Alicia peered out of the window. "Kelly is going to be livid."

"Hold up. Who's Kelly, what's the problem, and is she hot?" John asked, before turning to Maria. "Obviously the last question was a joke."

"Kelly is one of my best friends, we're both dancers and about a month ago, Mike cheated on Kelly and she's still a little hung up about it." Eve explained.

"Oh, Miz!" Something clicked in John's brain.

"Why do all the guys call him Miz?" Maria asked.

"Cause he's Mike _Miz_anian." John paused. "And yeah, he's a total player."

"Whatever. Has Kelly seen them together?" Maria asked.

"I'm guessing so." Eve pointed to the patio doors, at which Kelly was storming towards with a face like thunder.

* * *

"Have you seen that tramp he's come with?" Kelly hissed, coming into the kitchen with a face like thunder.

"She's our new neighbour and she seems quite nice actually." Alicia felt the need to defend Maryse.

"Well she needs to know what Mike's really like." Kelly went to make her way over to Mike and Maryse.

"No! Wait!" Eve ran over to Kelly and grabbed her arm. "Don't go over there and cause unnecessary drama! He's not worth it!"

"Well she needs to know!"

"Well, let me go talk to her, then." Eve said, reluctantly. "Just go chill out away from them and have a good time."

"Fine." Kelly sighed, walking away.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Maria asked Eve. "Do you really want to get involved?"

"If Kelly goes over there, you know a fight's going to start. Perhaps if I say something discretely then it might be better." Eve sighed, before leaving the kitchen.

"Drama, drama, drama." Alicia sighed, getting herself another drink.

* * *

"I'm glad you asked me to come to this party with you." Mike said, as he and Maryse sat by the edge of the pool.

The pair had met when Maryse was on her way back from Starbucks, and Mike parked his car outside. The two got talking, and spent lunch together, before coming to the party. Maryse had the biggest player in Hollywood wrapped around her little finger, and all she had to do was flutter her long, dark eyelashes at him.

"God, you're sexy." Mike sighed, leaning over to kiss Maryse, to which she responded.

The rest of the party began wolf-whistling, apart from Kelly.

"Maryse, can I talk to you?" Eve approached Maryse once the pair stopped kissing.

"Yeah, sure." Maryse got up. "I'll be right back, sweetie." Maryse leaned over and gave Mike one more kiss before following Eve over to an empty bench.

"This is really embarrassing for me to do, but Kelly is my friend, and I feel like if she says something to you, it might not come out right." Eve took Maryse's hands in her own.

"Who's Kelly?" Maryse was confused.

"Kelly is Mike's ex." Eve explained. "Mike cheated on Kelly, and I think she felt a bit upset seeing you two show up together."

"Oh, is she the blonde who's been giving me evil looks ever since I arrived?"

"Probably." Eve said apologetically. She felt horrible doing this. "I'm not saying you have to go, just, you know... lay off the PDA a little. I'm so sorry about this."

"it's fine." Maryse smiled. "I totally get it. Give me a hug, sweetie."

Maryse leaned over and gave Eve a hug.

"What a sweetheart." Eve smiled once Maryse had gone, however she was distracted by a couple of guys hanging around the gate outside.

* * *

"Leesh, there are a couple of guys at the gate that say they know you." Eve approached Alicia, who was in the pool with Layla and Tiffany.

Alicia got out of the pool and walked over to the gate, where Adam Copeland and two of his friends, both of whom were equally hot, were standing.

"Hey Adam." Alicia paused. "And Adam's friends. Adam, how did you know about this party?"

"I saw Maryse and Miz out earlier and they told us about it." Adam explained. "These are my buddies Christian and Chris."

Alicia was curious as to why Maryse would invite guys she barely knew along to her party. Perhaps it was Mike.

"Dude! It's Chris Jericho from Fozzy!" One of the guys at the party shouted, and everyone else whooped.

"Don't leave them standing at the gate, Leesh. Let them in." Maria smiled. "I'm Maria, this is my party. Well, mine and Eve's."

"Where's the beer?" Maria led Christian and Chris over to the keg, leaving Alicia stood with Adam.

"I guess you have popular friends." Alicia couldn't help but ask. "So why didn't you bring Vickie along?"

"Why do you think?" Adam replied, laughing.

Alicia smiled. At least he had a sense of humour.

"Actually, I need to find Maryse or Miz. I owe Miz some cash for drinks earlier."

"Oh, right." Alicia said. "Well, they were by the pool a minute ago."

Just as Alicia said that, she noticed Maryse was already leading Miz out of their garden and back to her house.

* * *

"So who are Fozzy?" Maria asked John. "If you're some movie star, you should have Hollywood connections."

"Fozzy are a rock band who mostly performs around the Hollywood circuit. They're pretty good actually; I've been at some parties where they've performed."

"Ooh, look at you and your big Hollywood parties!" Maria laughed. "This is probably a downgrade for you, isn't it?"

"I'm having a great time." John replied. "You did a good job. The people are nice, the food is good, that redheaded host is smokin' hot; what more could you ask for?"

"It's gone surprisingly well, actually." Maria nodded proudly. "We should do this again sometime."

"That'd be awesome. Actually I've got an extra ticket tomorrow night to..."

Maria suddenly felt everything stop around her, as she saw an all too familiar face coming through the gate.

It was _him. _He'd been gone about four months, yet he hadn't changed a bit.

His clothes still looked creased, and lived in, he still had that enigmatic swagger everywhere he walked. Maria even remembered the brown military jacket, jeans and sneakers he was wearing.

And of course, his hair was still rainbow coloured.

Maria stayed silent as he began walking towards her.

"Aren't you gonna welcome me back, Maria." He smiled, smugly.

"Welcome back, Jeff."

* * *

_Hope you enjoyed! XO_

* * *


	6. Maryse: Secret Liasons

****

* * *

**SECRET LIASONS  
Maryse**

* * *

Fresh from one of her weekly trips to the spa, Maryse felt better than ever. Her skin was glowing and her eyes were sparkling. After a late night, this was just what she needed.

As a Maryse drove down Robertson Boulevard, she noticed that Kitson was open, not to mention having a sale. At that point, Maryse realised how much she loved L.A and everything in it.

There was nothing she could fault this town; the weather, the shops, the guys, all perfect. There was one in particular who'd caught her attention, hence the late night.

Maryse eyed the Kitson boutique up and down. Never one to turn down a shopping trip, Maryse parked her car and went into the shop.

* * *

"This is hot." Maryse commented to herself, pulling a short, blue Marc Jacobs dress out from one of the racks and holding it up against herself.

"That would look awesome on you." A voice from behind Maryse said.

Maryse turned around to see Alicia stood behind her. "Thanks." She said cautiously.

"I have the most overbearing couple in the office, and I had to get out of there." Alicia laughed. "So are you gonna get the dress."

"I haven't decided yet." Maryse paused. "Cute jacket." She pointed at the chinchilla bomber jacket Alicia was holding. "I was going to get it, but this is L.A."

"Yeah, I'm still considering it." Alicia smiled. "I go to New York a lot, so I guess I could use it then."

The girls spent a few seconds analysing the items of clothing each were holding. It doesn't matter whether you're friends or not, there's always style competition between girls in L.A.

"So, Maria and Eve's party was fun, wasn't it?" Alicia decided to break the ice, however tactfully decided not to comment on seeing Maryse and Mike leave early together.

"It was cool." Maryse nodded. "Everyone was nice, especially the guys."

"Probably because you're a bonafied hottie." Alicia laughed. "But most of the girls are sweet too."

"Yeah, of course, it's just this one girl..."

"Kelly?"

"Yeah, _Kelly_." Maryse said her name like it was the plague. "She kept giving me dirty looks and acting like a bitch towards me because I showed up with..."

"Mike?"

"Yeah, Mike." Maryse said. "I don't get it. I mean, she's a pretty girl. Surely she can find another guy to hook up with."

"I mean, I know Kelly quite well, and she's a lovely girl..."

Maryse scoffed.

"Seriously, she is. It's just," Alicia sighed. "Mike cheated on her with one of Kelly's best friends a couple of months ago, and I don't think she's really over him."

"Yeah, I know."

"Oh?"

"Eve told me."

Alicia suddenly felt a lot less guilty.

"Honestly, I feel bad for the girl, but it's not my problem." Maryse shrugged. "He's her ex for a reason, and maybe it's time she just... got over it, you know? If it's been a couple of months, she needs to move on."

Alicia was slightly stunned by what Maryse said. She might not have meant it to sound to heartless, but that's certainly how it came across.

"Anyway, I've got to get going." Maryse said, making her way to the cash register. "I've got a date to get ready for."

"With Mike?"

"Oh yeah." Maryse winked, before leaving the store. "Anyway, ciao for now."

* * *

"So how was your day?" Mike asked, as the pair sat in Hyde lounge, one of Maryse's new personal favourite hangouts.

"Not bad." Maryse sipped at her cocktail. "After I left yours, I went straight to the photoshoot, and then after that I went to the spa. Then I went shopping on Robertson, and bumped into Alicia."

"Alicia Fox?"

"Yeah. She lives down the street from me, and she was at Maria and Eve's the other day. I assume you know her?"

"Quite well." Mike shrugged. "She's alright, but some of her friends are a little crazy. Hollywood's a small town, and everyone knows everyone's business."

"So you know _all_ about Alicia?" Maryse smirked.

"Not _all_ about her." Mike replied. "I mean, I know she runs this wedding planning business, which is pretty impressive considering she's only like, what? 24?"

"Very impressive."

"Our groups of friends go to the same clubs and parties. She's a bit of a party girl, but apparently a hard business woman."

"A hard business woman?" Maryse couldn't quite believe that. "But she seems so... sweet."

"Don't let that good girl attitude fool you. She's a tough bitch when she needs to be." Mike laughed. "Besides that I just know that she hangs with Maria and Eve's crowd.

"Who's in Maria and Eve's crowd?" Maryse was curious about the different Hollywood cliques, wondering who she should get involved with.

"It's mostly Eve's dancer friends like Layla and Kelly, and some other chicks that Maria and Eve just know."

"Do you get along with them?"

"You must've dated a couple of girls in that circle." Maryse wanted to find out the real story behind the Kelly issue. "Maria or Eve?"

"Nope." Mike shook his head. "I dated Layla for a little while, only like two weeks, but I dated Kelly for longer."

"Which one's Kelly?" Maryse asked with fake curiosity.

"She's got blonde hair... I dunno. She's just like every other girl in L.A."

"Gee, thanks." Maryse ran a hand through her long blonde hair.

"You know what I mean." Mike laughed.

"So what happened between you and Kelly?"

"We broke up." Mike stated.

"Why?"

"She may be hot, but she doesn't have a lot going for her besides that."

"So you just broke up with her?"

"Don't hold this against me, but I actually cheated on her."

"I've cheated on guys before. It doesn't bother me." Maryse shrugged. "When things aren't working out, sometimes the alternatives seem a lot more appealing."

"Are there more appealing alternatives than me?" Mike leaned across the table.

"Not yet." Maryse stretched out a hand and pinched one of Mike's cheeks. "So, are you ready to get out of here?"

"One question first," Mike held up a hand. "Do your friends know you're here with me?"

"My friends? Who do you mean?" Maryse raised an eyebrow.

"Eve, Maria, Alicia..."

"They're not my friends. I don't _do_ friends."

* * *

_Hope you enjoyed! XO_


	7. Eve: Catch My Eye

_Sorry about the long wait, but I've posted two chapters which i hope makes up for it! Please review! X_

**CATCH MY EYE  
Eve**

* * *

Eve turned down _'Love, Sex, Magic' _on the sound system, as Ciara's dance troupe stretched out after three hours worth of hardcore dance training.

"Great job today, guys." Eve called as they finished stretching out. "You did really awesome."

"This means we've got 6 of 10 major dances covered, we are right on schedule." Layla said. "We'll see you guys tomorrow."

And with that, the twenty-strong dance troupe left.

"I don't think I can handle another dance troupe this afternoon." Layla collapsed breathless on the bench. "That was a three hour rehearsal!"

"It was pretty killer." Eve agreed, sitting next to her friend. She took a water bottle out of her gym bag and held it against her forehead for a couple of seconds.

"If you take off the cap, you can drink out of it too." Layla grinned, giving Eve an example with her own bottle, before sticking up two sarcastic thumbs. "See! It's multi-purpose!"

"I'm way too hot to reply to your bitchy comments right now." Eve murmured, however she took her friend's advice onboard and drained half the bottle in one.

"Don't you feel so much better?"

"Y'know, I could kill for some Pinkberry frozen yogurt with fruity pebbles." Eve smiled, closing her eyes and tipping her head back so it touched the wall.

"_What?_ Eve's not spending her lunchtime working her ass off in the gym?" Layla said with mock shock. "She's a human being and not a crazy gym-obsessed cyborg?"

"Are you gonna come with me to Pinkberry or not?" Eve stood up, bag in hand.

"Did I say I wasn't going to?" Layla smiled.

Layla followed her friend out the door; however the pair was met by a familiar face.

"Layla, Eve." Randy nodded at the two dancers.

"I'm gonna leave you guys to it." Layla smiled, before making a tactful exit.

"So, what's up, Randy?" Eve asked once Layla was gone.

She suddenly felt very self-conscious of the fact she had sweat beads on her forehead, had her hair tied up in a messy bun and was wearing a '_Frankie Says Relax_' t-shirt.

She took her hair out of its bun and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

"I was wondering if you were on your lunch now?" Randy asked.

Eve nodded.

"Did you want to go get something to eat?"

Eve nodded again.

_Say something woman, say anything!" _

"Swell." Eve smiled. _I'm gonna kill Maria for making me watch Grease last night..._

_Well, at least I didn't say steaks..._

* * *

"I haven't spoken to you since the barbeque on Saturday." Eve said.

She and Randy were sat in the downstairs cafe of the gym. It was no Pinkberry, and the food was sucky but gym employees got a discount, so it was good enough for them.

"Did you have fun?" Eve asked.

"What kind of a steak is this?" Randy laughed, prodding the slab of meat with his fork.

"Randy?" Eve giggled.

"Sorry." He pushed his plate aside, and instead just ate the French Fries. "Yeah, it was awesome. I must say, Ted's 'magic hands' were pretty good when it came to doing the barbeque."

"I was impressed." Eve smiled. "Ted and Cody are cool. I think most of my friends spent the party drooling after them. Men and women."

"Yeah, you get used to it when you've been friends with them for as long as I have." Randy smiled.

"I'm sure you get that kind of attention too." Eve moved her pasta around it's plate.

Randy shook his head.

"Come on!" Eve laughed. "I mean, have you _seen_ you?"

"Every day." Randy smiled.

"I just mean..." Eve paused, not quite sure how to put her point into words. "You're a good looking guy so I'd assume you'd get a lot of female attention."

"Well, there's only one female I've got _my _eye on at the moment." Randy looked up from his food at directly into Eve's eyes.

"You're gonna make me blush." Eve giggled.

"I was really glad when you invited me to your party on Saturday." Randy admitted. "I've liked you for a long time, Eve, but I've never really had the confidence to come talk to you."

"Why? I'm about as scary as bunny rabbits."

"I don't think you realise just how beautiful you are, Eve." He took one of Eve's hands in his own, and kissed it.

"Thank you." She smiled, looking up at the clock on the wall. "Crap, I've got to get going now..."

Eve stood up and Randy followed, still holding her hand. Randy pulled Eve in close to him, and was just about to press his lips against hers, when...

"Eve Marie Torres, the dance troupe is waiting upstairs!" Layla bounced into the cafe and practically whipped Eve out of Randy's arms. "Get a room next time!"

"I'll call you later!" Eve called.

Randy waved a hand in response.

"You're dead, Layla."

* * *

As Eve pulled up outside her house, she noticed Maria putting a large black bag into their trash.

"Would you believe I'm still clearing up four days after this freakin' party?" Maria laughed, slamming the lid of the bin.

"Tell me about it. I found some random guys shoes in the bathroom this morning." Eve got out of the car. "Shoes, for Gods sake! Shoes!"

"Madness." Maria rolled her eyes.

"What's for dinner, honey?" Maria was a much better cook than Eve, and the pair had an ongoing joke that Maria was like Eve's housewife.

"I'm so tired that cooking is not my top priority." Maria replied, as the pair walked into the house together. "I had a child's photoshoot, and the kids were maniacs..."

"Don't you recognise that car outside Maryse's?" Eve interrupted, pointing at the silver Escalade sat on Maryse's driveway.

"It's..." Maria paused. "You don't think...?"

"I think so." Eve shook her head, as she Maryse coming to the front door of her house, in a black silk nightie.

She was closely followed by Mike, who looked like the cat who got the cream. The two shared a steamy kiss, before Mike got into his car and drove off down the road.

"Have a good night, girls!" Maryse called across the street, before slipping back into her house.

"Did you just see what I saw?" Eve shook her head again.

"Yuh-huh."


	8. Alicia: Hiding The Truth

**HIDING THE TRUTH  
Alicia**

* * *

Looking at herself in the bathroom mirror, Alicia couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Her make-up was a little smudged, her hair was even more static than usual and there was a tiny rip on the left cup of her bra.

Whenever Alicia stayed at another guy's house, she had to go through his bathroom cupboards. She couldn't help it, she was a nosy girl. Rifling through his cupboards, Alicia was mildly impressed.

"A man who takes care of himself." Alicia pulled out a bottle of Diesel cologne. "I like that."

"Who're you talking to?" He called from the bedroom.

"No-one." Alicia clamoured back into the bed, where he was lying.

"Ready for round two?" Adam winked.

* * *

Of course Alicia felt guilty. Adam was a married man, but she told herself that a woman has to do what a woman has to do.

Ever since the barbeque, Adam had been texting her non-stop and Alicia had been doing her best to ignore him. She eventually agreed to go meet with him, with the intention of breaking up with him, however her plan didn't materialise, as she ended up being swept off her feet by the Canadian charmer.

This was the fifth morning she'd woken up at Adam's house, and no-one else knew. No-one except Adam's best friend Christian who Adam decided to it would be safe to tell, much to the irritation of Alicia.

Flopping down on the bed, Alicia was out of breath.

"If you can't keep up, get out." Adam shrugged as he settled down into the mattress.

"You know what I hate?" Alicia turned over so she was looking at him. "Guys that are cocky for no reason."

There was a lot of heat in their relationship, whether it was romance or arguments.

"What's wrong Adam? Cat got your tongue?" Alicia smirked, when Adam's face twisted into one of fear.

"No. We can resume this argument later when my fiancée isn't in the house." Adam said calmly. The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs got louder.

"WHAT?" Alicia sprung out of bed, and began picking her clothes up off of the floor. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Hide, I guess." Alicia was slightly concerned at the fact that Adam wasn't.

Alicia managed to find time to shoot Adam one last dark glare, before plunging into his dark closet.

* * *

"_Sweetie, what are you doing here?" _

Alicia couldn't see through wooden doors; however she could hear every word the pair was saying.

"_I thought you weren't supposed to be back until tomorrow." _

"_Today's conference was cancelled, so I can come back early."_ Vickie sounded a hell of a lot more excited than Adam. _"So I have a day off, and you do too. What do you want to do?" _

"_I actually need to go get some groceries, but it would be a big help if you could go get them for me." _Adam suggested. Alicia couldn't help but admire his quick thinking.

"_Adam, it's my first day off in weeks, and you want me to spend it getting groceries for your bachelor pad?" _

"_It would be a big help." _Alicia could practically sense the puppy dog eyes.

"_Fine." _Vickie sighed.

Alicia heard her footsteps leaving the room, and soon after, a car pulling away outside. A couple of seconds later, Adam tapped on the door of the closet.

"You can come out now." Adam opened up the closet door, as he held a cocky smile on his face.

"I don't know why you look so smug." Alicia hissed, putting on her dress. "You're fiancée nearly caught you in bed with another woman!"

"But she didn't." Adam pointed out.

"But..." Alicia didn't finish her sentence, instead opting to growl. "God you infuriate me."

"And you talk too much, but you don't hear me complaining." Adam got back into bed.

"Whatever, I have to get to lunch with Maryse." Alicia put on her coat. "And I might not come back!"

"You'll be back tomorrow." Adam smirked. "I guarantee it."

* * *

"You look stressed." Maryse commented, as Alicia arrived at the Starbucks where the pair was meeting.

"I'm fine." Alicia took her sunglasses off, and took a sip of the Chai latte she'd bought.

"You don't look fine." Maryse leant across the table. "It's okay, I'm a good listener."

Alicia eventually sighed, and lowered her voice. "What I tell you cannot leave the two of us."

"Of course."

"I, um... Adam and I are..." Alicia waved her hands around a little, and Maryse nodded slowly.

"But he's..."

"I know." Alicia put her head in her hands. "I'm a horrible person."

"You aren't a horrible person." Maryse said comfortingly. "Sometimes, a woman has to do..."

"...what a woman has to do!" Alicia concluded. "God it's so good to be able to talk to someone about this!"

"What about Eve and Maria?" Maryse was intrigued. "I thought you guys were best friends."

"Oh don't get me wrong, I love them both, but they just wouldn't understand." Alicia said. "They'd tell me I was 'being stupid', and I had to 'end things immediately'." Alicia imitated Maria's voice, then Eve's.

Maryse laughed.

"I mean, it's not as if they're the best girls to give out relationship advice." Alicia blurted out.

"What do you mean?" Maryse asked, coolly, seeing weakness in Alicia.

"Well, Eve's had a crush on that Randy guy for like, a year, and only _just _done something about it. I mean, she's sweet, but that doesn't mean she has to be all 'innocent and virginal' around _all _guys." Alicia scoffed. "And don't even get me startedon Maria..."

"Why?"

"She's been with most of the guys in Hollywood!" Alicia exclaimed. "She's not a slut or anything, she just opens up to guys too easily. I don't know what it is, but guys walk all over her. It's probably because she's too nice. I just hope John doesn't do the same, but you never know with these movie stars."

"Wow." Maryse laughed slightly.

"Yeah." Alicia smiled. "You know, it's so good to find someone like you in Hollywood. There aren't many nice girls in this town."

"Tell me about it." Maryse smirked.


	9. Maria: But It's Over Now

_Once again, please read, review, enjoy, and tell me what you think :)_

**BUT IT'S OVER NOW  
Maria**

**

* * *

**

'_But you put on quite a show, really had me going. But now it's time to go, c__urtain's finally closing...'_

Maria softly sang along to the music coming out of her bedroom speakers, as she sketched some of her fashion designs into a worn out notepad.

Maria had always dreamt of being a fashion designer, and had dozens of notepads filled up with her drawings and sketches to prove it.

As much as she loved her styling job, she sometimes wondered whether her dream would become a reality.

She put away her notepad, as she found herself distracted by her phone vibrating in her pocket.

"Hello?" Maria answered.

"_Glad to see you haven't changed your number." _Maria could practically hear Jeff smirking down the phone.

"What do you want, Jeff?"

"_I was wondering if we could meet up_."

"Can I ask why?" Maria was cautious.

"I _have something to tell you, but I'm not sure if it's the sort of thing I should say over to phone_."

"Okay. I have a job this afternoon, but I can come over now?"

"_Yeah, that'll be fine_."

"See you soon then."

* * *

Making her way downstairs, Maria grabbed her car keys from in the painted tray which sat on the kitchen counter.

"What're you guys doing here?" Maria asked, as she noticed Eve and Layla sat back at the table, eating cold pizza from the previous night.

"We're gonna eat cold pizza and work on the Ciara dances some more." Layla held up the Ciara CD. "Ciara pulled out of our afternoon class. Divas suck."

Eve looked down at Maria's car keys. "I thought you were going to spend the morning working on your sketches. You're going out?"

"Um, yeah." Maria blushed. "Jeff just invited me over."

"What?" Eve's pizza made a splat noise as it dropped onto the kitchen table.

"Maria, you can't!" Layla exclaimed.

"Why?"

"Because you're with John!" Layla continued.

"Layla's right." Eve chipped in, wiping up the tomato sauce from the table with some tissue. "I mean, you've spent months long getting over him..." Eve stopped mid sentence.

"Eve?"

"Ria, you are over him, aren't you?"

Maria sighed. "There are some people you never stop loving, no matter how bad they treat you. To me, that person will always be Jeff. That doesn't mean I'm gonna go back to him." She slung her handbag over her shoulder. "Besides, I'm with John now."

"I'm just looking out for you." Eve shrugged.

"And that's why you're my best friend!" Maria blew Eve a kiss. "But this is just something I've got to do."

"Ria!" Eve stopped Layla at the front door.

"Yeah?"

"Just... watch out for Jeff."

* * *

As she pulled up outside Jeff's apartment in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, Maria felt butterflies in her stomach.

The last time she'd come here, she discovered Jeff was renting out his apartment for the coming months, whilst he went back home to North Carolina.

He'd pulled some stunts before, but never one quite like that. Leaving town without telling his girlfriend? That was the last straw for Maria.

_Just go in there and get it over with_, Maria told herself, and before the voice in her head could come back with a response, she got out of the car and made a quick beeline for the front door.

"Hey stranger." Maria was greeted by Jeff's childhood friend, and neighbour, Shannon Moore.

Shannon was definitely eclectic; his body was covered in tattoos, he always had crazy hair, whether it was a Mohawk, or dreads, and Maria was pretty sure he was growing weed in the apartment above Jeff's.

"It's been a while since I've seen you around here." Shannon gave Maria a hug.

"Hey Shan." Maria smiled. "You off to work?" Shannon owned a tattoo parlour in this area of Silver Lake.

"Yeah, you here to see Jeff?"

"Yeah." Maria bit her lip. "It was good to see you, though."

"You know, seeing as you're not with Jeff anymore, you should come up and see me sometime."

"We'll see, Shannon." Maria was already walking away. "We'll see."

* * *

"So, do you want a drink or something?" Jeff asked, as he let Maria into his apartment.

His apartment was in the hipster area of Los Angeles, and was... shabby, to say the least.

Not a lot had changed since her last visit, the curtains were still bed sheets, and vice versa, the paint work was chipped and the couch had tears in it.

"No thanks." Maria replied, however her eye was caught by one particular tear in the arm of the couch. "Is this from where...?"

Jeff nodded, and Maria smiled nostalgically, as she remembered when she and Jeff were, well, 'fooling around' on his couch, and she'd left a tear with her stiletto.

"Isn't it a little early to be drinking?" Maria looked at the beer bottle Jeff was holding.

"Still preaching, Maria?" Jeff sat down on the sofa. "Besides, you only live once."

"Whatever." Maria shook her head. "So before you say anything, I want to say by bit." Maria paused. "Do you mind?"

"Be my guest." Jeff sat back.

"Okay." Maria took a breath. "I don't think us getting back together is a good idea."

"Whoa, Maria..."

"No, hear me out." Maria sat down next to him. "I've spent _so_ long, trying to get over you, and now I am, and I'm in a really good relationship..."

"Maria,"

"And John makes me really happy, so if you could just..."

"Maria!" Jeff yelled, finally getting his ex to shut up. Silence took over, as all that was heard was a key turning in the lock.

"I didn't know you had a roommate." Maria said quietly.

"I don't. Candice has a spare key."

"Candice?"

"Yeah?" Candice emerged in the doorway, looking every inch the supermodel she was.

* * *

Long dark hair, killer body, yep, Candice Michelle was Hollywood's new It Girl, and obviously Jeff's new...

"...girlfriend, Candice." Maria had obviously tuned out of introduction time.

"Yeah, I know." Maria said. "I've done styling for some of Candice's shoots."

"Oh yeah, I remember." Candice nodded. "You have awesome taste. It's Maria, right? Did you want anything? A drink? Something to eat? Jeff's not exactly a model host." She laughed.

"Actually, I've got a shoot to get to, so I'd really better get going." Maria got up. "I'll see you guys around."

"Good to see you again." Candice called, as Maria left the apartment.

Maria couldn't deny that Candice was a sweet girl, but as she made her way back to her car, all Maria could think of was how Jeff had never given her a spare key.

'_That was quite a show, very entertaining. But it's over now, go on and take a bow...' _


	10. Girls Night Out

**GIRLS NIGHT OUT**

* * *

"Girls night, girls night, girls night out!" Maria chanted from the back of the car.

It was Tiffany's birthday, and Maria, Eve, Alicia, Layla, Kelly and of course, the birthday girl Tiffany were all going out to S Bar to celebrate Tiffany's twenty-fourth birthday.

The girls had managed to get a limousine and driver for the night, as well as inviting everyone to S Bar, leaving Tiffany to simply worry about what to wear.

"I can't believe you guys did all this!" Tiffany exclaimed, slightly giddy from the champagne she'd been drinking.

"You're my oldest and best friend; therefore you deserve only the best." Alicia clinked her glass against Tiffany's.

"So who's coming out tonight?" Tiffany asked.

"Pretty much everyone we know." Eve laughed. "I literally just told everyone I knew to come along. It should be a good turnout."

"Is Randy coming?" Layla cooed.

"Actually, I invited him but he's out of town for the weekend." Eve shrugged.

"Maybe next time?" Kelly said, encouragingly.

The mood went seemingly sour, until the limo ground to a halt.

"Ooh, we're here!" Kelly squealed.

"Thank God." Eve muttered. "Too much champagne is _not_ good for the bladder."

* * *

After making quick 'hellos' to all those who'd come to attend Tiffany's party, Eve made a beeline straight for the bathrooms.

_What was it about women's bathrooms that made them so crowded?_ Eve thought to herself, as she squeezed through crowds of girls to join the queue for the stalls.

Eventually the queue filtered down, and when Eve came out of her cubicle, there were only two other people outside, two blondes fixing their make-up.

One was wearing a short black skirt, and had the longest legs Eve had ever seen. The other, who Eve thought had a prettier face, had lighter blonde hair, and was wearing a cute vintage style-dress.

"Hey, can I borrow your lipgloss?" The leggy blonde asked Eve.

"Sure." Eve handed her the lipgloss. What was it about women's bathrooms that made it okay to share make-up with total strangers?

"I'm Stacy, and this is Torrie." The leggy blonde smiled.

"Stace, can I borrow your mascara?" Torrie asked.

"Sure. Can you believe how busy it is in here tonight?" Stacy said to both girls. "I think it's like, a birthday party or something."

Eve couldn't help but laugh at the girls 'cheerleader' speak.

"Yeah, we're holding a party for my friend Tiffany's birthday."

The two girls nodded slowly, before going back to fixing their make-up.

"So, you and Carlito are still going strong?" Stacy asked her friend.

"He bought me a dog the other day! A Maltese called Chloe."

"That's so cute."

"So what about you? You haven't dated anyone since..."

"Randy Orton." Stacy spat out.

"Randy Orton?" Eve's ears suddenly pricked up.

"Yeah." Stacy gave Eve a dirty look. "What's it to you? You know him or something?"

"My, uh, friend is dating him." Eve lied.

"Really?" Stacy didn't look as if she believed Eve. "Tell your _friend_ she'd better watch out."

"Randy is bad news." Torrie chipped in.

"What do you mean?" Eve asked.

"He's a total player, and he's not a 'serious relationship' kind of guy. He cheated on me, most likely more than once, and I say 'once a cheater, always a cheater', right, Torrie?"

"Right." Torrie nodded defiantly.

"All I have to say is good luck to you, I mean, _your friend._" Stacy shrugged, before leaving the bathroom, closely followed by Torrie.

Eve made a vow never to come into a public bathroom again, the girls in there were nothing but trouble.

* * *

"Are you alright?" Kelly asked Eve, as Eve came and joined Kelly, Layla and Savannah who were all sat around a table.

"Yeah, fine." Eve brushed away what she'd heard. "Where's Tiffany?"

"Over there with Jack." Savannah pointed over to Tiffany and her boyfriend, who were both embarking on some major PDA.

"I hate couples." Kelly took a long swig of her drink. "I think Mike broke my ability to get into relationships."

"Uh oh." Layla said under her breath.

"What?" Eve whispered to her friend.

"Look over there."

Layla pointed to a couple of tables away where Maryse and Mike were sat at a table together, surrounded by a group of people.

"Oh my God, is that Alicia over there?"

"I think she's quite good friends with Maryse." Eve commented.

She didn't recognise many of the girls, most of them were probably Maryse's model friends, but she could spot Alicia's wild mane of hair from a mile away.

"Kelly's gonna freak." Eve put her head in her hands.

"Oh my God, Kelly, look!" Savannah was obviously new to the group, and didn't understand that pointing out Mike to Kelly was a _very _bad idea.

"They showed up together?" Kelly looked disgusted. "Eve, I thought you..."

"I tried talking to her at the barbeque, but I can't control people's relationships, Kelly!" Eve exclaimed.

"I have to say something to her." As Kelly stood up, she swayed a little – probably due to drinking too much – and began staggering over to Mike and Maryse's table.

* * *

"I don't know what you're trying to do..." Kelly slurred, as she approached Mike and Maryse's table.

"Kelly, not now." Mike turned to Eve, who'd reluctantly followed her friend. "She's wasted. Take her home."

"No, let the girl talk." Maryse said.

"Maryse, she's drunk..." Alicia stated from next to Maryse.

"Go ahead, sweetie." Maryse interrupted, before turning to Kelly, and putting mock sweetness in her voice.

"All I'm saying is, you bring this girl to the club, and you call me on my phone..." Kelly babbled.

"I never called her!" Mike insisted.

"Listen, hon." Maryse stood up. "I don't care about you, or anything that's happened between you and Mike, so you can take your business somewhere else."

"Let's just go, Kells." Eve grabbed Kelly by the arm, and began pulling her away. Eve was beginning to feel self conscious, as all the eyes on the table travelled towards her.

"So pathetic." Maryse said, loud enough for Kelly to hear.

-

Kelly ran at Maryse; however both Alicia and Eve were quick enough to realise what was happening, as they both grabbed Kelly by the waist, holding her back.

"Come on, take a shot, bitch!" Maryse yelled, sticking her hand in Kelly's face, only aggravating the spunky blonde.

"Kelly, leave it! You're bigger than that!" Eve pulled at Kelly, dragging her away from the table.

"What's going on?" Tiffany began walking towards the table, closely followed by Jack, Maria and John.

"Dude, girlfight." Mike grinned at Jack and John, who both smiled knowingly.

"Jack!" Tiffany exclaimed, slapping her boyfriend on the chest.

"Listen, Tiff, we've got to go." Eve sighed at her friend.

Tiffany shrugged in a 'What can you do?' manner.

"It's fine, everyone can come back to my place." John announced.

"You are so sweet." Maria cooed.

"You don't have to do that, its fine." Tiffany said.

"No, it's cool." John insisted. "Come on, let's just go."

"Alicia, come on." Alicia hoped she'd gone unnoticed, however as Eve turned to her, she knew that wasn't the case.

"I..."

"Alicia." Maryse didn't raise her voice, instead shot Alicia a look which showed exactly how she felt.

"I'm sorry." Alicia genuinely was, as she gathered together her clutch bag, and got up from the table.

* * *

"That was cool of you to invite everyone back to yours." Maria told John, as the pair stood at the entrance of the club.

John said he'd give Maria, Eve and Kelly a ride back from the club; however he began to regret the offer, as he was now waiting for Kelly, who was throwing up in the toilet, and Eve, who was holding her hair back.

"It's nothing. It's a little messy, so a few extra beers cans won't hurt." John smiled.

"Maria!" Maria turned around to see Jeff and Candice stood in hand, the later smiling at her.

"Hey Candice." Maria gave Candice a polite hug. "Oh, John, this is Candice and Jeff."

Polite hugs and manly handshakes ensue.

"So what are you guys doing here?" Maria asked. "The clubs are almost closing."

"Well, we got a little distracted." Candice giggled.

Maria felt a little sick in her stomach.

"But we've come out to meet some friends anyway."

"Candice!" Maryse called from her table, to which the brunette began tottering over to the table.

"I'll see you guys later." Jeff followed Candice over to Maryse's table.

John winced. "Is that..."

"My ex? Yeah." Maria smiled.

"Wow. That was awkward."

"Tell me about it."


	11. Maryse: Don't Trust Her

**DON'T TRUST HER  
Maryse**

* * *

The sound of Maryse's cell phone ringing woke her up from her slumber. The time was 9:32am, a little early for Maryse's liking, but she answered anyway.

"_Hello?"_ Maryse recognised Alicia's voice.

"Hey Alicia."

"_Hope I didn't catch you at a bad time." _

Maryse looked at Mike sleeping by her side. "Nope. Not a bad time at all."

"_Good."_ Alicia paused. _"I just wanted to apologize for what happened the other night." _

"What happened the other night?" Of course Maryse knew what happened the other night; however she didn't want to seem fazed by it.

"_You know, leaving the club..." _

"Oh that!" Maryse pretended to suddenly remember. "Don't worry about it."

"_Great, because I feel really guilty about it..." _

"Alicia, it's okay." Maryse smiled down the phone. She was such a good liar, perhaps acting would have been a better path than modelling.

"_Cool. Are we still on for Les Deux tonight?" _Alicia asked hopefully.

"Absolutely. See you later." Maryse hung up.

* * *

Getting out of bed, Maryse slipped into the bathroom where she turned on the shower and began contemplating the previous night.

It had been a good night for the French-Canadian. Everyone had come out for a good time, she hadn't paid for a single drink - thanks to Mike – but there was one person that was pissing her off.

Maryse couldn't stand Eve Torres.

Little Miss 'Always-There-For-My-Friends' Perfect Dancer was the kind of girl Maryse hated. Everything about Eve drove her crazy. Her stupid friends, her innocent attitude...

* * *

"...the way she _has_ to get involved in everyone else's business, but claims that she's 'only standing up for her friends'. Like she's _such_ a do-gooder!" Maryse bitched to Mike, as the two sat in Maryse's kitchen whilst she made him breakfast.

"You really hate her, don't you?" Mike smirked.

"Eurgh. I hate her more than anyone in this town." Maryse practically threw Mike's plate of bacon and eggs down on the table. "It's like, what makes her so perfect?"

"You not having any of this?" Mike said, tucking into his meal.

"I don't get a body like this by eating junk like that." Maryse scoffed in her thick French Canadian. She stuck to the fruit salad, however she couldn't help but look longingly at the glistening egg yolks.

"You're missing out."

"So what're you doing today?" Maryse asked, desperate to change the topic of conversation.

"Working." Mike replied glumly.

Maryse noted that being the star of a reality show was hardly 'work'.

"What're you doing?" He continued.

"I have a Muscle and Fitness shoot in a couple of hours, and this evening a group of us are going to Les Deux. You should come along." She added nonchalantly.

"Can't, I have a date." Mike replied.

"A date?" Maryse spat out.

"Don't worry, it's all scripted." Mike smiled sweetly. "This 'Melina' girl means nothing."

"It's hardly a reality show if it's scripted." Maryse rolled her eyes.

Mike shrugged. "There's no such thing as reality television anymore."

* * *

"Call me later." Maryse gave Mike a kiss, as she watched him get into his car, and drive off down the street.

"Hey, Maryse!" Just as she was about to walk back into her house, Maryse groaned as she heard Eve calling her name across the street.

She groaned, before plastering on her best smile and turning around to look at the Latina. "What's up, Eve?"

"I just wanted to apologize for last night." Eve began walking towards Maryse's house; however Maryse noted she never actually came onto the driveway. "I think everyone was a little drunk, and I know Kelly's totally gonna regret all that stuff she said."

"It's fine." Maryse waved a hand. "Don't worry about it."

"Great." Eve nodded. "I'll see you later then?"

"Great." Maryse smiled, before getting into her car and slamming the door shut. "Bitch."

* * *

"And then she comes up to me, and says all this crap, apologizing for last night." Maryse continued her bitching tour, this time hitting the Los Angeles studio for her photoshoot.

"I don't know, Eve seems pretty sweet..." Her model friend, Rosa Mendes, said helplessly.

"She is not sweet!" Maryse interrupted. "On the plus side, Alicia did call to apologize."

"I have to admit, leaving the table like that was a little weird."

"It's like she's scared of Eve and Maria." Maryse commented, as one of the make-up artists went to work on her.

"I don't think she's scared of them." Rosa observed. "Hollywood can be a vicious place, and you need all the friends you can get in this town. Alicia's just being smart by hanging onto a popular group of friends."

"I'm her friend!" Maryse exclaimed.

"Wow, one friend, lucky girl." Rosa said sarcastically. "All I'm saying is, you need to get Alicia on your side, by any means necessary."

"Any means necessary?"

"_Any means necessary." _Rosa winked, before walking off towards the shoot.

Maryse sighed, before turning to the make-up artist, Jillian. "What do you think I should do?"

"I totally agree with Rosa." Jillian put away her make-up brushes, and began walking away. "By any means necessary."

The light bulb suddenly went on in Maryse's head. She had an idea.

* * *

"It's a little harsh, but it should work." Rosa replied, after Maryse told her of her 'genius' idea.

"You think I should do it?" Maryse asked.

Rosa nodded, and handed Maryse her cell phone, which was sat on the make-up table.

Maryse took a deep breath, before typing in Alicia's number and waiting for her to pick up.

"_Hello?" _

"Hey, Alicia. It's Maryse."

"_Hey Maryse." _

"Is this a good time?"

"_Yeah, I'm just at work. What's up?" _

"I don't know how to tell you this, but I heard someone saying something the other night and I..."

"_Saying what?" _

"I should've told you sooner, I know, but..."

"_Maryse? Who said what?" _

Maryse smiled.

This was about to get interesting.


	12. Eve: The Softer Side Of You

**THE SOFTER SIDE OF YOU  
Eve**

* * *

As she pulled up in the parking lot of the gym, Eve felt ill. She hadn't been able to focus on anything except the feeling all day. All she could think about was what Stacy and Torrie had said in the bathroom.

Why would they have made something like that up? They didn't know about Randy and Eve; they had no reason to upset her.

Eve felt like an idiot. She was a shy girl, and it took a lot to get her to ask out a guy. When she asked out Randy, she really thought he was someone special, but she was beginning to wonder if she'd made a mistake.

As Eve noticed Randy pulling into the parking lot, she sank down into her seat. She watched him get out of his car, pull his gym bag out of the trunk, and walk into the building.

_You're such a stalker_. Eve told herself.

Eve wasn't ignoring Randy, nor was she even angry with him; she just didn't want to talk to him just yet.

She wanted to gather her thoughts together, before she said something stupid and messed up their relationship before it had even started.

* * *

"Jeez, what's eating you up?" Layla said, as she came into the dance studio, and noticed Eve sat down on one of the benches with a grim expression on her face.

"It's nothing." Eve said quietly.

"Well, it's obviously something." Layla sighed, sitting down next to her friend. "Come on, tell Auntie Layla everything."

"Alright, but you can't tell anyone." Eve gave in.

Layla mimed zipping up her lips.

"The other night at the club, I was in the bathroom and these two girls starting talking about Randy..."

"Randy? How do they know Randy?"

"Apparently one of them used to date him."

"Weird."

"Yeah, and she started saying all this stuff about how he's not a 'serious relationship kind of guy' and 'once a cheater, always a cheater...'"

"Where did you hear that?" Eve's head snapped around and she realised Randy was stood at the door of the studio.

"How long have you been stood there?" Eve stood up and walked over towards Randy

"Long enough." Randy said, and began walking away.

Eve leaned back against the wall, confusion setting in.

"What're you doing? Go after him!" Layla instructed.

* * *

"Randy! Wait up!" Eve called, as she ran down the corridors of the gym after Randy. She could see him, but he obviously wasn't listening to her.

"Who told you all that stuff about me?" Randy turned around abruptly. He looked almost... angry with her.

"This tall blonde girl called Stacy."

"Typical Stacy." Randy rolled his eyes. Despite the fact they were in an abandoned corridor, Randy slid down a wall and had his elbows rested on his knees.

"I didn't really listen to what she said." Eve semi-lied. "I wanted to hear the truth from you."

"Well, it's all lies." Randy confirmed.

Eve nodded slightly, and sat down next to him. She wasn't sure what to do now, as the pair sat together in an awkward silence.

"Stacy was my 'childhood sweetheart'. She and I dated on and off for about two and a half years back when I lived in St Louis." Randy eventually explained. "She was the love of my life and I really loved her, and I honestly thought she was the girl I was gonna marry."

That wasn't exactly what Eve wanted hear, but she listened respectfully.

"Then one day, she was just gone." Randy sounded pretty beat up about it. "I went round to her house and her parents told me she'd left for L.A two days prior. She didn't give me any warning."

Eve put a hand on his knee, she could kind of sympathise. It all sounded a little too similar to Maria and Jeff's situation.

"I followed her out to Hollywood you know." Randy smiled slightly.

"That's really sweet." Eve said. It sounded like something out of a cheesy chick flick.

"I looked everywhere for her. But I couldn't find her, so I gave up hope."

"I don't get it. Why did she call you a cheater?"

"Because she came back and I'd moved on." Randy said. "She wanted things to go back to normal, but I couldn't wait for her forever, and I'd moved on. I started a new life in L.A as a trainer. I found new friends, a new girlfriend, and she didn't like it."

"She didn't like that you were happy and she wasn't." Eve commented.

"Exactly." Randy nodded. "She wanted our relationship to work for her, but that's not how relationships work. It's a two way thing, you know?"

* * *

"I'm sorry." Eve said eventually.

She and Randy had been sat in the corridor for a little while now, and Eve knew she had to break the silence.

"It's alright." Randy said. "I just..." Randy's voice trailed off.

"You just...?" Eve smiled.

"I really like you, Eve, and the last person I want to ruin things between us is Stacy."

"I really like you, too." Eve blushed slightly. Staring into Randy's blue eyes, Eve found herself leaning in until her lips touched his.

Eve had never kissed Randy before, their relationship had moved pretty slowly, and Eve wondered whether kissing him there was the right moment.

The kiss was only brief, her lips just touching his, before she pulled away.

"What?" Eve asked cautiously, as she watched a smile creep across Randy's lips, as he rubbed at his bottom lip.

"It's about time." Randy grinned. He took Eve's face in his hands and pulled her in towards him again.

* * *

"Ria? Are you home?" Eve called, as she got into her house.

She'd spent the rest of the day beaming with happiness at the fact that Randy had kissed her.

"Ria?" Eve went into the kitchen. Still no Maria.

She walked over to the fridge, and pulled a bottle of water out of it. She then saw Maria had left a note on it.

_Eve – Out on a date with John, will be back late – Ria X_

Eve smiled at her friend's cuteness, but she had to tell someone about Randy. Looking out of her bedroom window, she saw Alicia's car pulling into her driveway.

She found herself running over to Alicia's house.

"Leesh! You'll never guess what happened!" Eve called, running up to her friend.

Alicia didn't say anything, minding her own business.

"Leesh! Leesh, what's going on?" Eve asked. This was so unlike her friend.

Alicia walked into her house, and slammed the door behind her.

_What was her problem?_

Eve walked over to the door herself, and tapping on it loudly. "Leesh? What's going on?"

Alicia's bedroom window flew open, and Alicia stuck her head out.

"What're you doing?" Eve called.

"You're a bitch, Eve Torres! I hate you and I hate Maria! I don't want to talk to either of you _ever _again!" Alicia slammed the window shut.

"What the hell was that about?" Eve shook her head in disbelief, as she began walking back to her own house.

As Eve looked across the street to see Maryse smiling out of her living room window, Eve couldn't help but think the French-Canadian beauty had something to do with this.


	13. Alicia: Breakdown

_Hope you enjoy! Please review and tell me what you think of the story so far! Also, I've added a poll to my profile, and I just wondered which fic would be more popular! Please take it!_

**BREAKDOWN  
Alicia**

* * *

Looking out of her bedroom window, Alicia creased up her eyes, as she watched Eve walk back to her house with a confused look on her face.

"Bitch!" Alicia screeched, throwing her sidekick across the bedroom, and watching the back of it fall off as it hit the wall and landed on the laminated wood floor with a thud.

The frustration had built up inside of her, and Alicia wanted to scream until her lungs exploded, hoping some of the backsplash would land on Eve and Maria. Yes, as a teenager, Alicia went through a phase of watching _a lot_ of horror movies.

How could her two best friends betray her like that? Maryse had told Alicia everything. About how they'd been spreading rumours about her all over Hollywood, telling people she was having an affair with a married man. Adam wasn't even married, but how did they even know about it? It made no sense.

Alicia wanted to get out of the house before she drove herself insane. She picked up her sidekick, which was cowering in the corner of the room, and punched in Adam's number.

"Hello?" Alicia swallowed back the lump in her throat.

"_Is that you Leesh?" _

"Yeah, it's me. Is this a bad time?"

"_It is actually, I'm out at the moment, so I can't really talk right now." _Adam said. There wasn't a lot of background, making it difficult to believe he was out anywhere. _"What's up?" _

"I wanted to see if you were free to do something, but if you're out, I guess I'll leave you alone." She said sadly.

"_Great, I'll call you later." _Obviously not acknowledging the tone in Alicia's voice, Adam hung up abruptly, leaving Alicia holding her sidekick in her shaking hands, until she threw it against the wall so it smashed completely.

So what if Adam wasn't around? Alicia had other friends to go see. Grabbing her handbag, she made her way to her car outside.

* * *

"They did what?" Tiffany handed Alicia a cup of coffee, as they sat in the kitchen of Tiffany's house.

"Spread rumours about me..."

_They're not rumours if they're true..._

"...Basically they've been telling the whole of Hollywood what a skank I am."

"Are you sure?" Tiffany didn't look too convinced. "It doesn't sound like something Eve or Maria would do."

"But it's true, and it sucks." Alicia huffed. "Have you heard anything?"

Tiffany shook her head. "Besides, who told you all of this?"

"Maryse."

Tiffany was tempted to say something, but instead she bit her tongue.

"What?" Alicia noticed Tiffany's reluctant expression.

"I'm sorry, Leesh, but I just... it doesn't seem like something either of them would do." Tiffany paused. "And it's not like Maryse has exactly proved herself to be an angel..."

"You can't blame this on Maryse!"

"I'm not!" Tiffany raised her voice.

"Tiff, you're supposed to be my best friend – no wait, you're more like my sister – and it sucks that you don't believe me!" Alicia got up and began walking towards the door.

"That's not fair!" Tiffany yelled, following Alicia out.

"Forget it, Tiff. I'll see you tomorrow." Alicia stormed out, slamming every door behind her.

Around 26 seconds later, Tiffany's boyfriend Jack came into the home he and Tiffany shared. He'd just arrived home, and as soon as he came in the house, he settled down on the sofa and looked at Tiffany, who was curled up next to him reading a magazine.

"I just bumped into Alicia outside." Jack said. "What's her problem?"

"Sweetie, I couldn't tell you if I tried."

* * *

It was very rare that Alicia went out to the clubs without Eve or Maria or any of her usual group. Tonight, however, was the night she had to make a new group of friends. Dolled up in a new dress and her lucky Louboutins, she may have looked like a million dollars, but she certainly didn't feel it.

Alicia grabbed her clutch bag and made her way outside. She was catching a ride to the club with Maryse, and they were meeting at her house.

"Hey!" Alicia looked across the street and noticed Maria stood there.

The street was dark, but it looked like Maria was taking out the trash. As Alicia squinted, she noticed the redhead didn't look so glamorous in sweatpants and a facemask.

"Leesh, why are you so angry me and Eve?" Maria yelled across the street.

"How did you find out about Adam?" Alicia called, angrily.

Maria trudged over to where Alicia was stood. "Adam? How did I find out _what_ about Adam?" Her facemask cracked with confusion.

"You honestly don't know?" Alicia laughed.

Maria shook her head.

"Alicia!" Before Alicia could say anything else, Maryse was coming out of her house and over to where and Alicia and Maria were stood on the sidewalk.

"Please Maryse, I need to talk to Alicia." Maria insisted.

"Sorry, we have plans." Maryse smiled sweetly, before handing Alicia her car keys. "I'll meet you in the car."

Alicia looked at Maryse, then back at Maria's sad, confused face, before walking over to Maryse's car.

"Cute outfit, Kanellis." Maryse cackled. "Stay away from her." Maryse turned on her heel and walked towards the car.

* * *

"Gee, what's with the sad face?" Rosa came over to where Alicia was sat, and took a seat in the empty space next to her.

"It's nothing." Alicia folded her arms protectively over her chest.

"Is this about Maria and Eve?" Rosa looked over at Maryse, who was embarking on a major make-out session with Mike. "Because I heard all that stuff they said about you."

"Really?" Alicia wanted to believe Maria after their encounter, but how could she now?

"Yeah; they were talking about it in the bathrooms at Les Deux a couple of nights ago."

"Wow." Alicia sunk back in her seat.

"It's okay." Rosa put an arm around Alicia's shoulders. "You've got us now, and we're only looking out for you."

"Hey guys." Maryse came and sat down next to Rosa.

"I was just telling Alicia that we're her friends now, and she doesn't need Eve or Maria." Rosa updated the blonde.

"Definitely." Maryse nodded. "Alicia, I told you what I did because you're my friend, and because I don't want to see you get hurt."

"It's hard to find good friends in Hollywood."

"So stop frowning, because we're here..."

"And because it gives you wrinkles." Alicia added.

"That's more like it!"


	14. Maria: Two Boys, Two Hearts

**TWO BOYS, TWO HEARTS  
Maria**

* * *

Sat at her kitchen table, Maria let the berries on her spoon slip back into the bowl of yogurt they came from, as she pushed the bowl aside. She'd had a lot on her mind, and when Maria got stressed, she lost her appetite.

Resting her elbows on the table, Maria leant her head against her fist, and sighed deeply.

"What's eating you, Gilbert Grape?" Eve grinned, coming into the kitchen and sitting down on the seat opposite Maria. Ever since she got together with Randy, Eve was on a constant high.

She took one look at the bowl of yogurt and berries, and instantly tucked in. Eve liked to say she got her good figure from a healthy diet, but really it was a combination of dancing and good genes.

"Okay, so you're not going to spill?" Eve smiled. "I'll start. Doesn't this whole Alicia situation piss you off? She won't even listen to us when we tell her we haven't done anything wrong."

"Of course it annoys me, but we all know how PMS Alicia can be." Maria rolled her eyes. "I love her, but she has her moments. We'll be friends again in no time."

"Maybe." Eve paused. "So what's your problem? And it can't be Alicia, because I've already taken that problem." Eve got a glass of juice out of the fridge. "It's Jeff, isn't it?"

Maria stayed silent.

"It's always about Jeff." Eve smiled, sitting back down. "Spill."

"He gave her a key!" Maria exclaimed. "He _never_ gave me a key, the whole time we were together!"

"That's not your fault! You were the best girlfriend you could've been... under the circumstances." Eve added, wincing. "You're with John now, you can't be obsessing over Jeff."

"What do you mean?"

"Either quit thinking about Jeff, or break up with John."

Getting up, Eve took her empty plates over to the dishwasher, however when she turned around again, Maria was gone.

"Ria!" Eve ran over to the window, and called out of it, as she saw her friend getting into her car. "What're you doing?"

"I've got a decision to make!"

* * *

Whenever Maria got nervous, she had a tenancy to rip and tear things. Today, her victim was a Starbucks napkin, as she sat waiting for John to arrive.

She had to break up with him, didn't she? John was the prototype boyfriend – practically perfect in every sense – but she was still in love with Jeff, and she had to sort out her issues with him before getting serious with John.

Always the peacemaker, breaking up with people was painful for the redhead. Maria continued shredding her napkin until it lay in tiny pieces, scattered over her table.

"What did the napkin ever do to you?" Maria looked up, and realised Jeff was standing above her.

"Shut up." Maria muttered. "I actually have company."

Jeff pretended to look for Maria's invisible lunch companion, and then shrugged.

"John is coming. His press conference overran." Maria explained. She was shocked to realise she'd become one of those girls who used her current boyfriend to make her ex jealous.

"Wow. The life of a movie star is certainly exciting." Jeff said sarcastically.

"Anyway, what're you doing here? I didn't think Starbucks was your 'scene'?" Jeff tried to think he was 'so individual', and didn't follow the coffee-orientated population of L.A.

"Actually, I'm here with Candice." Jeff pointed ahead of the pair, where Candice was sat, attached to her Blackberry, only looking up for drink her frappuccino.

"If she manages to look up from her Blackberry for long enough, tell her I say hi." Maria couldn't help but smirk.

"I'd better get back to my girlfriend."

"You have fun, now." Maria smiled sweetly.

"Yeah, and tell Mark Wahlberg I say hi." Jeff said, as he walked back to his table.

"Like I've never heard that one before!" Maria looked up and realised John was coming into Starbucks, and talking to Jeff.

* * *

"So why did you call me here at such short notice?" John asked, sitting opposite Maria. As she looked straight past him, she looked straight onto Jeff and Candice's table.

"We need to talk." Maria began. "I really like you John and you are such a great guy."

"Well, you're pretty great too." He wasn't making this easy for her.

"You're sweet, and I love spending time with you."

"Actually, I have something to tell you too." John said. "Do you want to go first, or shall I?"

"You can?" Maria almost asked him.

"It's so hard to find genuine girlfriends in Hollywood – most of them just assume they'll get a cut of my pay packet..."

"John, I'm not after your money."

"I know that, and that's why I love being with you. I know its early days, and it might seem weird me asking you this, but I wondered if you wanted to come to the premiere of my new film with me next weekend?"

Maria was both relieved, and annoyed. She was relieved, because for a minute she thought he was going to ask to marry her, but she was annoyed because he was making this break-up very difficult for her.

Looking straight past John, she realised Jeff was looking right back at her, almost watching her think. The two stared at each other for a minute, as if one knew what the other was thinking, before John waved a hand in front of Maria's face.

"Maria?"

Maria shook her head a little, before looking back at the table where Jeff was. He was gone. He and Candice had up and left and she didn't have anything else to distract herself with.

"So what do you say?"

"I..." Maria stumbled over one syllable, before biting her lip. "I'd love to come to your premiere with you."

"That's great." John gave her a kiss on the cheek. "So what were you going to ask me?"

"It's not important." Maria looked at the Panini the Starbucks waitress had brought over to the table, and pushed the plate aside. As she said earlier, when Maria got stressed, she lost her appetite.


	15. Claws Come Out

**CLAWS COME OUT **

* * *

Scooping her hair back out of her face, Eve Torres smiled at the coral pink on her toenails that the pedicurist had just applied.

"Cute colour." Maria peered over the copy of Elle she was reading, and looked down at her own feet, which were being worked on. "Spending my days in heels does not do my feet any good!"

"That's why dance is so good." Eve grinned, looking up from her cell phone. "Sneakers are the way forward."

"Who's texting you?" Maria asked, putting down her magazine. "Randy?"

Eve blushed, putting her phone in her jeans pocket. "He just wanted to know what I was up to."

"You guys are so adorable together." Maria cooed. The redhead knew she should've been sick of listening to the Latina talking about her _amazing_ boyfriend, but Maria just found it cute.

"So I never found out what happened the other day after you ran off?" Eve asked, laughing slightly. "One minute you were there, the next you were out in your car. Did you break up with John?"

"I tried to." Maria admitted, as the manicurist removed the chipped blue nail polish from her fingernails. "But he's like... the perfect boyfriend! And he invited me to a movie premiere! Of all the celebrities I've styled before premieres, I've never been invited to one!"

"But usually you're not dating the celebrities." Eve chipped in. "So you still like Jeff, but you're still seeing John?"

"Pretty much."

"Eurgh, how complicated." Eve fake shuddered, however the expression on her face soon changed. "Speaking of complicated..."

Maria turned around to look at the door, in which she saw Maryse and Alicia coming in.

Rolling her eyes, Maria turned back to Eve. "Just what we need."

* * *

"What the hell are they doing here?" Maryse scoffed, as she looked over at Maria and Eve, who were both seemingly unfazed by her arrival.

"They always come here. The three of us used to come here all the time." Alicia smiled nostalgically, looking over at her former friends.

"I say we have a little fun with them." The blonde's voice just hinted trouble.

"What do you mean?"

Maryse pulled her phone out of her bag, searched for the 'C' section of her contacts, and began calling. "Hey, are you in the mood for a manicure?"

* * *

"Why do they keep looking over?" Maria tried to avoid Maryse's blatant stares, instead focusing down on her newly painted fingernails.

"Just ignore them." Eve tried to brush them off. "So what're we doing tonight? I was thinking maybe sushi, because the other day, I reading about the benefits of raw fish, and apparently..." Eve's voice trailed off, however her mouth drooped open slightly.

"What?" Maria queried, turning around to look over at the door. "For God's sake, I knew they were scheming something."

Coming through the door was Candice, with all her model swagger; that girl managed to pull off sweatpants and a tank top in style. She took a moment to give Maria a quick wave, before sitting down next to Maryse.

"They're just doing it to get at you." Eve reassured her friend. "Don't give them the pleasure of seeing you hurt."

"Your nails are done." The manicurist said from Eve's hands.

"Can we get out of here?" Maria asked, desperately.

"Ria..."

"Eve!" Maria raised her voice slightly, her eyes widening as she did so. "I need to leave now!"

"Fine!" Eve held up her hands, before standing up and grabbing her handbag off the ground. "Let's go then."

The two girls began walking towards the door, where the Trio of Evil – as Maria had christened them – were sat.

"Bye Maria." Candice smiled, as she watched Maria leave. Maria attempted a half-hearted wave.

"Bye girls." Maryse cooed, her voice dripping with false excitement.

Eve slammed the door behind her. "Bitch."

* * *

Walking towards her car, Eve let a low whistle escape her lips. "Wow, talk about awkward."

"Tell me about it." Maria sighed. "What happened to Alicia? She used to be so nice, now it's like she's..."

Eve felt someone's hands digging into her sides, and she was about to practise some of her ju-jitsu on his ass, before she realised it was Ted DiBiase, closely followed by Randy and Cody Rhodes.

"What's up?" Eve gave Randy a kiss on the cheek. "What're you guys doing here?"

"The nail salon is Ted's regular hangout." Cody pitched in.

"It's all about the magic hands." Ted held up his hands, and shook them proudly.

"If anyone can pull off metro sexual, it'd be you, Ted." Eve laughed at her boyfriends goofy buddies. "So what are you guys _really_ up to?"

"Just hanging out." Randy replied. "We were actually..."

"I'm gonna go wait in the car." Maria interrupted. She took Eve's car keys straight out of the brunette's hands, and walked towards the car.

"What's her problem?" Cody asked, looking on after Maria.

"Man trouble." Eve wasn't really sure, but she assumed that was the main idea. "She needs cheering up; I do not want to spend my evening with _that_ wet blanket."

"Wow, my girlfriend's so kind." Randy nudged Eve gently. "Actually, we were going out to that new club Playhouse tonight. You guys should come along."

Eve looked across the parking lot, where she could see Maria sat in the passenger seat of her car. Her normally smiling features looked sad. Her glossy lips held a sad pout, and her eyes looked cloudy, as if she were holding back the tears.

"We'd love to." Eve eventually said.

"Perhaps that'll put a smile on her face."

* * *

"Cool off the drinks, Maria." Eve tried to do her most stern voice, as she pulled the cocktail the redhead was holding straight out of her hand, and slammed it down onto the table in front of them.

Maria had been drinking all evening – drowning her sorrows, most likely – and Eve was getting slightly sick of having to look after her friend. She was just trying to have a good night out; not have to be Maria's chaperone.

"Noo..." Maria whined, flopping down on the seat next to Eve, and rolling her head back.

"Is she okay?" Cody asked.

"She'll be fine." Eve brushed Maria's red locks out of her face. "She just needs a little time-out."

"You sound like her mom." Ted laughed.

"And sometimes I feel like it too... Maria!" Eve had to stop midway through her sentence. "Stop making bedroom eyes at that peroxide blonde douche bag!"

"Doesn't she have a boyfriend?" Ted asked, to which Eve rolled her eyes.

"Let her go." Randy held Eve's arm, as the group watched Maria stumble over to peroxide blonde's group of friends. "She's a big girl, she can fend for herself."

"But, I..."

"Eve!" Randy exclaimed. "Why do you feel like you have to be her mom?"

"It's just the way it's always been!" Eve called over the music. "I'm so used to seeing her get her heart broken by guys; I guess I'm used to..."

"Holy shit!" Cody pointed over at the dance floor, where Maria was embarking on some major make-out-ness with peroxide blonde douche bag.

"Am I allowed to freak out now?" Eve asked Randy, calmly.

"I guess now would be an appropriate time."

* * *

"What the hell are you doing?" Eve dragged Maria out of the door of the club, and watched her friend's eyes roll all over the place. Eve looked at the glass of water in her hand, before dousing it over her friend's head.

"Are you crazy?" Maria screeched, running her fingers through her drippy locks.

"Are _you _crazy?" Eve shoved her friend slightly. "For God's sake, you're dating John, but you like Jeff, and now you're hitting on random guys in clubs."

"His name is Dolph." Maria tried to sound intelligent, but her words were slightly slurred.

"Oh, you know his name? Because that makes it _so_ much better!"

"Stop yelling at me!" Maria put her hands over her ears, and crumpled to the ground beneath her.

Eve looked at her friend in despair, before sitting down next to her and putting an arm around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry." Eve said. "But you need to tell John. He has a right to know."

Maria nodded solemnly.

"Do you want me to take you home?"

Maria nodded again.

"I'll just go tell the guys we're leaving." Eve sighed, getting to her feet and going inside, as she realised she'd ruined another evening looking out for her friend.

Maria watched her friend go back inside, however her vision was slightly blurred. She fumbled around in the pockets of her skirt – a Maria Kanellis creation, of course – and dug out her cell phone.

Eve was right. She needed to tell John.


	16. Maryse: Losing Grip

**LOSING GRIP  
Maryse**

* * *

Scraping her long blonde hair out of her face, Maryse washed the remains of her facemask off of her skin. Impeccable skin was all a part of her job, and a slave-like skincare regime contributed to this. Just as she was about to begin moisturising, she heard her cell phone ringing from her bedroom.

"Hello?" Maryse answered.

"_Hey it's Mike." _The familiar voice said. _"I just called to say I can't make dinner tonight." _

"I was going to cook and everything!" Maryse pouted; despite the fact Mike couldn't see her. "Why can't you come?"

"_I'm filming for the show." _

Maryse wanted to tell him his stupid reality show wasn't even that good – the acting was terrible - however the blonde managed to bite her tongue.

"_Could we go out tomorrow night?"_ Mike was still talking.

"Sorry, I already have plans with Alicia and Rosa." Maryse was not prepared to wait around for any guy, even if it was one she really liked. "It's your loss anyway, because I was in Victoria's Secret the other day..."

"_Victoria's Secret?" _Maryse could practically hear the lump growing in Mike's throat.

"Yeah, but I guess if you're busy, I'll just have to keep my treats to myself."

"_I could come over now." _He said desperately.

"Perfect." Maryse said before hanging up.

She was the master manipulator, and she knew it. She was already predicting an appearance from Mike in another ten minutes.

Just as she was about to change out of her Juicy tracksuit and into her silky black lingerie, she heard the doorbell ring. Slipping a pink bathrobe on top, she ran downstairs to answer the door.

"You're..." Early. Maryse didn't get to finish her sentence, as the visitor wasn't quite the one she was expecting.

"...here to see you." Eve Torres finished, with a scowl on her face. "Can I come in? We need to talk."

* * *

"What do you want?" Maryse sighed, as she led Eve through into her living room, before sitting herself down on the chaise lounge.

"What do you think I want?" Eve said, aggressively, not taking her eyes off of the blonde. Maryse didn't answer Eve's question, instead giving her an innocent shrug.

The blonde picked up a glass of cold water from the coffee table, and held it up against her forehead, before draining the contents. "They say water is good for hangovers... where is Maria, by the way?"

Eve froze on the spot, before sinking down into a nearby sofa. "How did you know about that? It was only..."

"Last night?" Maryse let a laugh escape her glossy lips, thinking of the text she received from Dolph Ziggler the previous night. "I've always said that Hollywood's a small town, and I stand by that. So tell me why you're here."

"I want you to stop messing with me and Maria." Eve said bluntly. Her voice wasn't much more than a hiss, but it was filled with hatred. "That means stop turning Alicia against us, and stop using Candice to get at Maria."

"Firstly," Maryse raised a finger to stop Eve. "Firstly, I can't stop Alicia thinking for herself. She's a grown woman."

"But you know how easily manipulated she is."

"And secondly, it's not my fault that Maria makes herself _such_ an easy target."

"An easy target? Maria's not an easy target."

"Sure, and Alicia's not easily manipulated." Maryse said sarcastically.

Eve wasn't surprised at this, as she laughed at Maryse's bad attitude.

"Is there anything else you want?" Maryse continued. "Because I'm expecting company any minute."

"Don't worry; I don't intend to hang around." Eve rolled her eyes. "I'll show myself out."

"How sweet of you."

* * *

Maryse loved frustrating Eve. There was nothing she loved more than having fun with someone else – or at their expense, in Eve's case. Laid back on the chaise lounge, the French-Canadian couldn't help but smile at her handy work.

Proud of her efforts, Maryse decided to treat herself. Walking into her kitchen, she dug into the back of her cupboard under the sink, and pulled out a small heart-shaped box. Removing the lid, Maryse's hand played over a selection of truffles, before picking up her favourite white chocolate one, and popping it into her mouth.

Being a model, eating chocolate was a rare luxury for Maryse.

Before she could even consider another chocolate, her attention was caught by the sound of voices outside the kitchen window. Hiding behind the blind, Maryse peeped through the gap, only to see Eve stood by a certain reality show star's car.

Maryse couldn't get out of the door fast enough.

* * *

"Eve! Mike!" The blonde called, tottering over to the car in her five-inch heels.

"Hi, Maryse." Eve smiled innocently, as Maryse had earlier. "Everything alright?"

"Fine." The blonde said, coolly. "What are you guys talking about?"

Mike spoke up. "Eve was..."

"...just telling Mike what an evil, conniving bitch you are." Eve's voice dripped with venom. "I know we've never got along that well, Mike, but you could do so much better than that tramp."

"You bitch!" Maryse screeched, practically lunging at Eve, only to be caught by Mike.

"Maryse, let's just go inside."

"Don't worry, I'm leaving." Eve smiled. "I've caused all the trouble I needed to."

Back in the house, Maryse may have won the battle, but she knew she was far from winning this war. And this war was far from over.


	17. Eve: Skip A Heartbeat

**SKIP A HEARTBEAT  
Eve**

**

* * *

**

Car on the driveway, bedroom curtains pulled; as Eve pulled up outside her house, she knew that Maria's hangover was obviously still in full force.

It was 2pm, and with Eve's afternoon dance class being cancelled, she decided to come home and check on her friend, so with her Starbucks' in hand, she fumbled with her keys to get into her house.

"Maria, I'm home!" The brunette called.

"I'm in here!" A voice came from the living room, where Maria was laid out on the sofa, watching her much-treasured Gossip Girl box set.

"Having fun?" Eve flopped down on the couch next to her friend.

"Chace Crawford doesn't need to act; he should just stand there and look pretty." Maria mused, not taking her eyes off of the TV and she spoke. As she looked at Eve, her attention was caught by the Starbucks in her hand. "Is that for me?"

Eve nodded.

"I knew there was a reason why we're best friends." Maria teased, blowing at the hot coffee.

"Why're you so happy?" Eve asked, suspiciously. "Last time I saw you I had to get Ted to put you over his shoulder and carry you home."

"Sorry about that." The redhead giggled.

"How the hell are you not a hung over bitch right now?" Eve was in disbelief. "There's all that stuff with John, and Jeff, and... what's his name?"

"Dolph." Maria filled in. "And I am _really _hung over. Well I was this morning, but since then I've got someone else to fill in for the shoot I was meant to be styling, I went out for a run, I've eaten a couple of bananas too, because I read they were good for hangovers..."

Eve wanted to remind Maria about the big mistake she'd made the previous night, however there was something oddly content about her friend that she didn't want to disturb.

"So what're you doing for the rest of the day?" Maria asked absent-mindedly, as Chace Crawford came back onscreen.

"I'm going round to Randy's house. He said he had the afternoon off, so I thought..."

Maria appeared more focused on Blair Waldorf than Eve Torres.

"Whatever, I'll see you later."

* * *

Reapplying her lipgloss, Eve checked her reflection in the car mirror. Her brunette curls cascaded past her shoulders, and her make-up was spotless – despite the fact she needn't have worn any.

Walking up to the door, Eve ruffled her hair once more before ringing the doorbell.

"Babe, what're you doing here?" When Randy came to the door, he looked as if he wasn't expecting to see her. Despite this, he still led her into his house.

"You said you had the afternoon off, so I thought..." Eve's voice trailed off, as she saw a familiar face in the kitchen. "Hey John."

"What's up, Eve?"

Eve was unsure of what to see to Cena. Had Maria spoken to him since last night? Did he know what had happened? Hollywood is a small town after all...

"How're you?" John eventually asked.

"Had a late night last night, so I'm a little tired, but besides that I'm good." Eve nodded.

"Good." John replied, as an awkward silence settled among the trio.

"John knows." Randy eventually said, breaking the silence.

"Knows what?" Eve asked innocently.

"Eve..."

"I know that Maria kissed another guy." John said.

Eve turned to Randy. "Did you tell him?"

"Actually, I got a text from Maria at about 1am last night." John stated, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket and showing Eve the message.

_JUST KISSED ANOTHER GUY... SORRY __MARIA X_

"Not exactly worth waking up for." John sighed.

"She was really drunk and..." Eve instantly tried to make excuses for Maria, but she knew she couldn't.

"You shouldn't make excuses for her, Eve." John shook his head. "I'd better go, I'll talk to you later, Randy."

"John!" Eve followed the actor out to his car. "Just... listen to her before you end things with her. Hear her out."

* * *

"Wow that was awkward." Eve winced, as she came back into Randy's house, where he was sat in the living room, watching Sports Centre.

"Tell me about it." Randy replied, turning down the volume on the TV. "Maria messed up."

"You can't just blame it on Maria." Eve laughed. "What about John?"

"What _about_ John?"

"I just mean that relationships are two-way things." Eve shrugged.

"Well perhaps if Maria hadn't _cheated_ on John, then perhaps they'd still be together." Randy concluded.

"Perhaps if John had paid a little less attention to his movie and a little more attention to Maria, perhaps she wouldn't have felt the need to cheat." Eve knew this wasn't the case, but she needed an argument.

Randy didn't respond, instead sitting back on the sofa, tipping his head back and letting out a sigh.

"What?" Eve asked cautiously.

"You do realise this isn't even our problem." Randy laughed. "Why are we fighting our friends' battles?"

"Because," Eve began, sitting next to Randy. "We're both caring people that look out for and stand up for our friends."

"Because our relationship is sturdy enough that we have nothing else to fight over?" Randy suggested.

"You really think that?" Eve smiled, nestling her cheek into Randy's shoulder. "Does this mean we need to make some problems?"

"I kind of like things how they are." Randy whispered, before pulling Eve onto his lap and kissing her on the lips.

Eve had kissed Randy before, but there was something about this kiss that was different to her. It was as if Randy wanted her more – or needed her. He held her frame close to his, holding handfuls of her blouse in his hand.

"Do you want to...?" Eve lifted a finger, pointing to the upstairs where Randy's bedroom was.

"Are you sure?" Randy asked, to which Eve crashed her lips against his again.

They hadn't had sex yet. It's not like Eve hadn't wanted it, because she had, it was just... Randy was a gentleman towards her, it was as if he didn't want to hurt her.

Picking Eve up, her legs still laced around his waist, Randy led Eve upstairs and into his bedroom, before dropping her lightly onto the bed.

"You're sure?" Randy said again.

"Randy," Eve laughed, pulling her t-shirt over her head. "Why've you waited so long to do this with me? I'm pretty sure you don't do this with every girl, and I've done this before so it's not like you're going to hurt me."

"I know." Randy looked down at Eve with his intense blue eyes, and pulled her hair out of her face. "I just wanted it to be special for you."

"It's with you." Eve shrugged, kissing Randy gently on his lips. "Of course it'll be special."


	18. Alicia: Surprise, Surprise

Oddly proud of this chapter...  
Please review :)

* * *

**SURPRISE, SURPRISE  
Alicia**

* * *

Flicking aimlessly through the copy of Vogue which sat on her desk, the last thing on Alicia's mind was planning the stupid Copeland-Guerrero wedding. She was pretty sure that organising weddings for guys she liked on wasn't on her list of New Year's Resolutions.

Christmas had come and gone, and it had been weeks – maybe even months - since she'd spoken to Eve and Maria, but after spending Christmas back home in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, Alicia was relaxed – until she remembered Adam's wedding was coming up.

"Good morning!" Savannah said in sing-song as she came into the office and sat down at her own desk. "Happy new year, Alicia."

Alicia sighed, avoiding eye contact with the pretty assistant.

"Happy, indeed." Savannah muttered, sarcastically. "Where's Tiffany?"

Alicia shrugged. She hadn't spoken to her childhood friend over Christmas since their argument at Tiffany's house, only to discuss business matters. Usually the pair of them would travel back home to Florida together, however with their relationship being more than frosty, this wasn't the case this year.

"Good morning Sav." The door of the office flew open, and in came Tiffany, with a huge ring binder in her arms. "Did you have a good Christmas?"

"It was great, thanks." Savannah smiled. "What about yours?"

"Oh it was good." The beautiful blonde sat down at her desk and stretched her arms out in front of her lazily. "I went to spend Christmas in Oklahoma with Jack, and..."

"Hold up." The assistant said, running over to Tiffany's desk. "Is that an engagement ring?" Savannah pointed at the huge diamond ring on Tiffany's finger.

"You're engaged?" Alicia exclaimed. Sure, she and Tiffany were fighting, but she expected to be informed about this kind of thing.

Both Tiffany and Savannah turned to look at Alicia, who'd been almost invisible prior to this announcement. "Yeah." Tiffany responded. "Problem?"

"No, I just... I thought you'd tell me this kind of thing." Alicia's voice sounded wounded.

"I tried." Tiffany sighed. "You should try answering your phone more."

Alicia rolled her eyes, and turned back to her copy of Vogue, instantly regretting declining Tiffany's calls.

"Exactly." The blonde said quietly, before standing up. "So jobs for today; as usual, Vickie's out of town, so I'm meeting with the caterer to discuss finances, Sav, we have 3 pairs of Louboutins that needed to be picked up on Rodeo, and Alicia, we have a delivery coming here which I need you to stay for."

Tiffany signed off her orders with a sweet smile, before picking up her handbag, blowing Savannah a kiss and leaving the office in a cloud of wedded bliss and Marc Jacobs 'Lola'.

Alicia knew that Tiffany was giving her the sucky job of sitting in the office and waiting for a delivery because she was still pissed off with her. Tiffany definitely took a leadership role in the business, and she was taking advantage of that.

"I'm gonna head off too. Those Louboutins aren't going to pick themselves up." Savannah said cautiously, getting up from her own desk and scuttling out of the office, slightly scared of her boss's new bitchy attitude.

Alicia furiously threw her copy of Vogue in the bin; her former friends feared her and she was spending her day in the office, waiting for a damn veil to be delivered. _Life was good. _

* * *

Tapping her pen in tune with the radio, Alicia couldn't help but sing along to Jay-Z' _Young Forever_ under her breath, as she thought back nostalgically to the Alphaville version of the song.

"_Forever young, I want to be forever young..._"

"_...Do you really want to live forever, forever, and ever?_" Alicia looked up and saw Adam's friend - who's name she could never remember – stood in the doorway.

"Hey, it's Chris, right?" Alicia smiled, as she looked up at the blonde singer, and signalled for him to come in. "What's up?"

"Your boss asked to see me about some bachelor party."

"Firstly, she's not my boss." Alicia groaned. "Just because she wears a suit doesn't make her more executive than me."

Chris simply laughed at Alicia's mini-rant.

"And secondly, Tiffany's not here right now. She'll probably be gone for a couple of hours." Those caters would have a field day; Tiffany _loved_ desserts. "You can wait if you want, but you'll be waiting a while."

Chris sat down on the couch, and nosily rifled through piles of fashion magazines, before deciding that Vogue and Marie Claire didn't appeal to him. No doubt there'd soon be a selection of bridal magazines on there.

"So, Adam and Vickie's wedding's pretty close." Chris commented. "I'll bet that pisses you off."

"We're not that far behind in the planning." Alicia smiled cheekily.

"Don't play dumb with me, Alicia, I know everything. Adam and I share things." Chris paused. "Fox by name, fox by nature I'm told."

"You're disgusting."

"A pretty girl like you deserves someone better than Adam."

Alicia didn't know what to say in response. She stood up and began filing things, desperate to keep her attention off of Chris. Chris got up from the couch, and approached Alicia. As she refused to look at him, he stood to her side, and ran a lone finger across the smooth skin of her cheek.

"Chris!" She exclaimed, slapping his hand away from her face, and walking back over to her desk.

"You're not the first girl to warm up Adam's bed for him, and chances are, you won't be the last." Chris didn't take rejection well. "I've always been a gambling man. I bet you he's in bed with another woman right this second. Care to play?"

"Play with yourself." Alicia commented, bitterly.

"I have $20 in my pocket, is that enough?" Chris watched Alicia look around the office reluctantly. "I'll look after this place." He settled down into Tiffany's chair. "How hard could it be?"

Alicia grabbed her handbag, and began walking towards the door. "I'll prove to you how wrong you are."

"Sure thing, sweetheart." Chris couldn't help but smirk as Alicia slammed the door behind her, shaking the office.

* * *

Alicia observed any possible signals of a man having an affair – it appeared she was an expert after all; Adam's car was on the driveway, the house looked pretty shut up however strips of light flashed through the curtains. He was definitely home.

Getting out of her car, Alicia made her way up the long driveway before tapping at the door. She waited for a couple of minutes, and still, no answer. Sneakily, Alicia checked under the doormat where she found what she was looking for – the spare key to Adam's house. He'd told her about it when the two planned to rendezvous at his house for one of their 'secret sessions'.

Slipping the key in the lock, Alicia attempted to enter the house as quietly as possible, scouring the downstairs rooms first. Alicia got a simple answer from every room; Adam definitely had a girl in the house, and it wasn't his fiancé.

The living room was a mess, with cushions scattered over the carpet, and a glass of champagne spilt over one of them. The dining room table had two plates on it, both containing congealed food, suggesting that not much eating had taken place. The kitchen was almost as bad; pots and pans everywhere, empty champagne bottles tipped over next to the bin – whoever he'd brought home had definitely created havoc in his already-messy bachelor pad.

Alicia attempted to tiptoe upstairs, even taking her high heels off in the process. She kept her footsteps soft as she padded across the landing, eventually curling her fingers around the handle of Adam's bedroom door.

She got what she was looking for; Adam in bed with another woman. Even asleep, Adam had a stupid grin on his face, however the woman couldn't been seen properly as a long mane of blonde hair covered her face.

Alicia picked up one of the discarded pillows, and threw all her weight into smashing Adam with the pillow.

"Leesh?" Adam's voice was confused, as he slowly opened his eyes. He then realised what had happened. "Shit, Leesh!"

"Adam, what's...?"

Alicia did not expect _that_, as the blonde sat upright, and Alicia recognised a distinct French Canadian accent.


	19. Maria: Unlikely Advice

**UNLIKELY ADVICE  
Maria**

**

* * *

**

"Why didn't you tell me you dumped John by text?" Maria's bedroom door flew open and in came Eve, who jumped onto the edge of the redhead's bed and grabbed Maria's shoulders, shaking her until she sat upright.

"What?" Maria whined, looking at her friend through bleary eyes.

"John showed me the text you sent him; how could you be so insensitive?" Eve scolded. "I mean, how could you break up with him by text?"

"I didn't mean to hurt him." Maria began. "I was emotional, and _really_ drunk, and when you said to tell him, I agreed, so I told him..."

"Via text." Eve added, unhelpfully.

"Come on, you know I wasn't in the right state of mind!" Maria defended, lying back down and banging her head against the pillow in fury. "Besides, how did you find out?"

"I was round at Randy's, and John was there."

"That's why you didn't come home last night." Maria shot her friend a knowing smile. "So you finally..."

"Yes." Eve held up a hand to stop her friend saying anything else.

"And it was...?"

"Good." Eve bit her lip to conceal a mischievous grin. All it took was a smile to reveal the details of her night. "He was very good."

"He looks like the kind of guy who'd be good..."

"Ria!" Eve squealed, putting her fingers in her ears. "God, it's like talking to my mom about sex! Besides, stop trying to change the subject. You should call John and try to apologize."

As she got out of bed and stepped in front of her full length mirror, Maria instantly cursed her stupidity. Wanting to apologize was one thing, but having to speak to John was a whole different bag of trouble.

* * *

Maria's fingers hovering over the keys of her phone. She wanted to apologize, and she wanted to tell John how much she regretted her actions, but she just couldn't do it. Sat on the edge of her bathtub, she plucked up the courage and scrolled through her contacts until she reached 'J'.

"_Hello?"_ John's voice came through loud and clear.

"John, it's me."

"_Sorry, who is this?"_ He sounded confused.

"Maria." The redhead said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"_Oh, right._" His voice turned sour. _"I deleted your number out of my contacts because I assumed I wouldn't need it."_

Maria laughed lightly. "I don't blame you, and I appreciate the fact you haven't hung up already."

"_Yeah, well I'm kind of interested in what you have to say."_ She could practically hear John's smile. _"So talk to me."_

"Okay," Maria began. "I just... I lost control. I got really drunk, and I made a huge mistake."

"_Mistake?" _John laughed. _"Maria, don't kid me, and don't kid yourself. You are so hung up on Jeff; you were practically looking for any excuse to get out of our relationship." _

"That's bull." Maria lied.

"_Like I said, don't kid yourself." _

Maria sighed. "Okay, so maybe I do have a... thing, for Jeff."

"_A thing?" _John paused. _"I really like you, Maria, and I thought we had something good going on, but you've clearly got your own problems that need dealing with, and I do __**not**__ want to be with you if you have feelings for someone else." _

"John..."

"_Call me if you manage to sort your shit out." _

And with that, the line went dead.

* * *

Playing with the tassels on the edge of a dress, Maria leant back against the dressing room wall. Her mind was focused on everything _but_ the fashion shoot she was supposed to be styling. Her phone call with John had been repeating in her mind all day, and...

"Hey, Maria! This top's the wrong size." One of the models, Ariel, called from behind the dressing room cubicle curtain. "It's way too big."

_That's probably because you've never eaten anything other than celery sticks..._

"I'll get you a new one." Maria called back as chirpily as possible, making her way into the studio where the rail of clothes was.

Rifling through the rack, Maria struggled to find a smaller size, however her search was cut off by the director of the shoot rushing up to her.

"Apparently there's another model still to come." He said, hands on hips. "Whoever she is, she's late and we have to get going."

"I have a list of models." Maria said helpfully, rushing back to the cubicles, where she grabbed her clipboard, before rushing back again.

"So who is she?" The director asked impatiently. Maria wasn't getting good vibes from this guy.

"Hang on." Maria said, her eyes flicking across the list of names and ticks. "Ariel, Shelley, Taylor... Candice?"

"Candice?"

"Yeah?"

Both Maria and the director turned around, and the brunette was stood in the doorway, perfectly on cue.

The director nodded slowly, before walking back to the main shoot. "Girl's got good timing."

* * *

"How does that dress fit?" Maria called through the curtain to Candice.

"It's perfect." Candice came out and gave Maria a twirl. "So cute."

"It's vintage Chanel. I picked it up at this little store..." Maria realised Candice was more distracted by her appearance than Maria's anecdote, so the redhead stopped. She couldn't resist adding, "So how's Jeff? I haven't seen him recently."

"He's good. Speaking of boyfriends, how's..." Candice clicked her fingers as if to speed up her thought process.

"John." Maria prompted, realising they could be there for a while.

"John." Candice confirmed. "How are things with you guys?"

Maria wanted to hate Candice – really, she did – but she couldn't deny how nice she was.

"Actually, John and I broke up." Maria announced. It would be at this point Maria would be playing with the tassels and avoiding eye contact, however the tassels were currently on Candice's dress.

"That sucks." Candice winced. "What happened?"

"Honestly? I got drunk and kissed another guy."

"Uh oh!" Candice giggled, biting her lower lip. "Why'd you do that?"

"John says he thinks it's because I'm looking for a reason to break up with him..." Maria didn't know why she was telling Candice all this, but the brunette was a very good listener. "...and I think I was."

"Oh, really?"

"I like someone else." Maria tipped back her head. "He's an ex of mine, and we were on off for a couple of years, but then he just completely disappeared for a few months. I thought he was gone forever, so I moved on with my life and got together with John. Then he comes back into my life with this beautiful new girlfriend."

"That sucks."

Anyone else would've cottoned on to the fact she was talking about Jeff, but not only was Candice a good listener, she was also incredibly slow.

"I wanted to be with John, but I still love Je..." Maria stuttered. "Jed. I still love Jed. I was crushed that he had this girlfriend, so I got drunk out of depression and was stupid enough to kiss the first guy that looked at me."

"And Jed has a girlfriend?"

"Carmen." Maria lied seamlessly. "Jed is in love with Carmen."

Candice nodded slowly, taking in all the information. "You know what I think?"

Maria shook her head.

"I think you should tell Jed how you feel." Candice sat down on a nearby chair. "Obviously things aren't going to be okay until you've told him."

"What if he shoots me down?"

"At least you'll know the truth." Candice shrugged. "I think you owe it to yourself – and to Jed."

"Candice!" The director barked, sticking his head around the door. "You're needed on the shoot!"

"Okay." Candice shot up and pulled her hair out of her face. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful." Maria smiled at Candice. "Go knock 'em dead."

Candice shot Maria a beautiful smile back.

"And Candice," Maria pulled the brunette by the wrist. "Thank you."

"Just make sure you love 'Jed' as much as I would have."

_Did she...?_ Maria walked towards the shoot, and watched Candice work it. _Perhaps she wasn't as stupid as she made out to be._

* * *

Please Review :) X


	20. Make Up, Break Up

**MAKE-UP, BREAK-UP**

* * *

After avoiding her for a week, Alicia knew she couldn't stay away from Maryse anymore. Not now Maryse was sat in her living room, smiling at her and acting like nothing was wrong. Something was definitely wrong.

"Why're you here, Maryse?" Alicia asked as coolly as she could.

"We need to talk about what happened last week." Maryse began.

"What could you possibly say that'll make things better?"

The pair sat in an awkward silence for a few minutes, until Alicia heard her kettle switch off in the kitchen. She went out to make Maryse a cup of coffee, before bringing it in to the blonde and practically slamming it down in front of her.

"You can start by telling me how it began." Alicia sat down on the sofa opposite Maryse. "Don't leave out a single detail; I'm dying to hear everything."

Maryse bit at her lip slightly – a possible sign of guilt – before wringing her hands together. "Well, obviously we met through you..."

"_Thanks, Alicia_." Alicia said sarcastically.

"...and while you were back in Florida, we just... hung out." Maryse shrugged. "We started talking; it was never serious, but one night, it just... happened."

"Does Mike know?" Alicia asked.

"Of course Mike doesn't know." Maryse replied. "He'd be crushed, and that's why you _can't _tell him."

"I don't think you're in any position to threaten me." Alicia laughed, sipping at her coffee. "You've fucked things up for yourself, and for our friendship."

"You're kidding me, right Leesh?" The French-Canadian laughed. "Come on, you're honestly going to stop being my friend because of this."

"You knew how much I liked him! And you went and slept with him? Friends don't do that!" Alicia walked over to the window and looked out across to Maria's and Eve's house. "I guess if you lied about this, you lied about them too?"

The blonde stayed silent, tapping her manicured nails against her legs.

"I knew it." Alicia shook her head, still looking out of the window. "You know, when you told me all that stuff, I thought it was because we were friends..."

Maryse stood up and walked towards Alicia, grabbing her caramel-coloured arm. "We are friends!"

"We _were_ friends!" Alicia yanked her arm away from Maryse. "We were friends until I discovered what a lying bitch you really are." Alicia paused. "And if you haven't got anything else to say, I think you should leave my house now."

Maryse opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, she slung her handbag over her shoulder and left Alicia's house.

* * *

Alicia had spent way too much time dwelling over this Maryse situation. Sure, a girl she'd thought was her best friend slept with her boyfriend, but after a week in her PJs eating Ben & Jerry's from the tub, she knew it was time to make a change.

It was time to get her old friends back.

Walking across the road to Maria and Eve's house, Alicia didn't know why she was so scared. They were her friends before, but the fear of them rejecting her was terrifying.

Alicia rung the doorbell, and waited for an answer. Through the glass windows, she could see a tall figure approaching the door, and when it was pulled open, Alicia was shocked to see a male figure stood there.

"Hey, it's Alicia, right?"

"Yeah, and you're Randy." Alicia nodded, remembering Eve's boyfriend. She was slightly caught off guard that they were still together.

"Yep." Randy nodded, before sticking his head back inside the door. "Eve, there's a visitor here for you!"

The brunette came running out from the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Randy from behind, nestling her head into his shoulder. When she realised the person at the door was someone she definitely didn't want to see, a scowl appeared on her face.

"I'll leave you guys to it." Randy gave Eve a quick kiss on the lips, before making his way out of the danger zone.

* * *

"I guess you'd better come in then." Eve muttered, holding the door open for Alicia to come inside.

Eve considered herself a reasonable person, but she was torn. Half of her wanted to slam the door in Alicia's face, but the other half wanted to give her former friend a hug and tell her everything would be okay.

"Maria, we've got a guest!" Eve called up the stairs to her friend.

A couple of seconds later, Maria's bedroom door clicked open, and the redhead padded out onto the landing in her bathrobe. A smile lit up on Maria's face as she saw Alicia.

"Hey Leesh." The redhead said softly, coming downstairs to greet her former friend. "I was about to make pancakes; you want some?" Maria knew full-well that pancakes were Alicia's favourite breakfast.

"Yes please." Alicia nodded, following Eve through to the kitchen. The Latina held a much frostier expression than her friend did, as Eve practically shoved a plate into Alicia's hand.

"So why are you here?" Eve asked frostily, folding her arms across her chest as she sat down at the kitchen table, watching Maria make pancakes.

"Last week, I found Maryse in bed with the guy I've been dating." Alicia admitted, unable to look her friends in the eye.

Maria turned around from the stove with a concerned look on her face. "Look after the pancakes, Eve."

The two exchanged places, as Eve took her place in the kitchen, and Maria sat down next to Alicia, putting an arm around her former friend's shoulder.

"I just feel like such an idiot; I acted like a total jerk towards you guys, all because Maryse told me some stupid lies which I just believed like an idiot!" Alicia said helplessly. "I guess it serves me right."

"Hurts, doesn't it?" Eve said spitefully.

"Eve!" Maria scolded her friend. "It's gonna be alright, you know. It's hard at first, but it gets better..."

"Forgive me for being the bad guy, but Ria; have you completely forgotten what happened?" Eve exclaimed, frowning at Maria. "Sorry Leesh, but it's gonna take more than a sob story to get my forgiveness."

"Eve..."

"It's okay." Alicia stood up, and walked towards Eve. The Latina was a lot more sensitive than people realised. "Eve, I don't blame you at all. I screwed up, and you have no reason to forgive me."

Eve muttered something inaudible under her breath.

"But I just wanted you guys to know how sorry I am. God, I wish I could go back and change the past, but I can't, so for now, all I can do is tell you how sorry I am."

Alicia looked at Maria, who was smiling affectionately at her, then back at Eve, whose face was still set in stone.

"I'll leave you guys to it."

Both girls watched Alicia walk down the hall towards the front door, and it was Maria who was the first to speak.

"For God's sake Eve. If she can suck up her pride, so can you." Maria nudged her friend. "Please, for me. I miss her; forgive her."

Eve looked back at her friend, and through the doorway at Alicia.

"Leesh!" Eve called, and her friend spun round on her heel. "You might as well stay and finish your pancakes. We don't want them to go to waste."

Maria smiled; she knew that was as much of an apology as Eve would give.


	21. Maryse: Chemical Reaction

Please make the effort to leave a review  
It doesn't take long, and it means an awful lot :)

* * *

**CHEMICAL REACTION  
Maryse**

* * *

"...I mean, it's not like I needed her anyway – she was just holding me back – but I do _not_ appreciate being kicked out of somebody else's house." Maryse vented to Rosa, as the two finished up their workout session at the gym.

Maryse was still seething over the events which took place a few days prior. Her meeting with Alicia had got her mad, but she was even angrier when she discovered Alicia had reconciled with Eve and Maria straight after. Seeing the three of them out shopping on Robertson Boulevard really boiled her blood.

"Well, you did sleep with her boyfriend." Rosa commented, stepping out of one of the showers. "I'd be pretty pissed if you did that with my Zacky."

"Zacky?" Maryse smirked, before towel drying her hair.

"Yeah, Zacky." Rosa smiled, before quickly changing her expression. "But seriously, can't you just let it go?" Rosa asked desperately. "Aren't you sick of all this torturing? You've had your fun with the both of them; isn't it time to finish things?"

"I'm just getting started." Maryse had a mischievous glint in her eye, as the two women made their way out of the locker room.

"Well, if you're going to continue this trail of evil, can we at least get some lunch beforehand? I'm starving." Rosa moaned, despite the fact she and Maryse would both have tiny salads and come away starving. Oh the life of a supermodel.

"Where'd you wanna go?" Maryse asked.

"I was thinking maybe The Ivy but I hear..."

"Or maybe we could stay here." Maryse's eyes averted away from Rosa, and over to a familiar male figure approaching the doors of the gym cafe.

"You want to eat here? At a gym cafe?" Rosa winced.

"Who said anything about eating?"

* * *

"Tell me again why we're here." Rosa groaned, as the pair walked into the gym cafe.

"I never told you in the first place." Maryse responded.

"So now's the perfect opportunity." Rosa said, clutching her water bottle. "Look, basically all the tables are full." People were practically rubbing shoulders at their tables, as the two girls squeezed through crowds of people to get inside.

"Perfect."

Maryse saw the male again, sat on a table alone in the corner, punching away into his phone. His eyes were focused down, which made it even easier to pounce.

Grabbing Rosa's hand, Maryse pulled her over to the table. "Come on."

The two models walked towards the table, and the guy's eyes kept focused on his cell phone. He only looked up when Maryse sat down in an empty chair and tapped her nails against his table.

"Can I help you guys?" The guy looked up and raised an eyebrow at the two women.

"Can we sit down? There's not a lot of room in here." Maryse signalled at the rest of the bustling cafe.

"Yeah, sure." He moved his gym bag off of one of the seats, and Rosa gingerly perched on the edge, still unsure of what was going on.

He continued to punch into his phone, not paying attention to the two beautiful girls in front of him. Rosa shot Maryse a 'What the hell is going on?' look, to which Maryse simply smiled.

"I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but I feel as if I recognise you from somewhere." Maryse pretended not to know the man sat in front of her.

"Really?" Randy didn't look up from his phone, which gave Rosa the opportunity to shoot Maryse another confused look. "I don't remember you."

"I know!" Maryse sat upright, triumphantly. "You were at Eve and Maria's barbeque, right?"

"Yeah." Randy looked up cautiously, putting his phone into his pocket.

"I was too; I'm a friend of the girls."

Rosa had to conceal her giggles with the sleeve of her shirt.

"I'm Mar..." Maryse hesitated. There was no way she was going to say her name; what if Eve had told him about her? "I'm Martha."

"I'm Randy."

"Oh yeah. You're Eve's ex boyfriend."

* * *

"What?" Both Randy and Rosa's jaws dropped, whilst Maryse simply sat back in her chair, satisfied with her work.

"What do you mean 'ex-boyfriend'?" Randy asked suspiciously. "Eve and I are still together. We _never_ broke up."

"You guys are still together?" Maryse turned to Rosa and bit her lip in a 'Have a said too much?' kind of way. "Oh I'm sorry..."

"Why did you think we'd broken up?" Randy was focused on what Maryse had to say; his cold blue eyes frosty with curiosity. Maryse smiled; she finally had his attention.

Maryse stood up, and picked up her bag. "Listen, I've already said too much. Just... pretend we never spoke, okay? Come on, Rosie..."

"Martha." Randy lightly took hold of Maryse's wrist, insinuating she should sit back down. "If you know something important about my relationship with Eve that I don't, I need you to tell me."

"You might not want to hear this, so brace yourself." Maryse said reluctantly. "Eve never told me you guys had broken up; I just assumed this was true because... well... I think she's cheating on you."

Randy's face dropped. He looked distraught, torn-up, almost as if he were holding in the tears. Maryse knew she was doing her job right.

"I wish I didn't have to be the one to tell you, but... well, I can't deny it." Maryse said sympathetically. "She's gone wild. I've seen her making out with a bunch of guys, not to mention the fact I see guys coming out of her house all the time – I'm her neighbour. I've got my friend Rosie here to back me up."

Randy turned to 'Rosie', but he didn't say anything. He was speechless.

"I... uh..." Rosa stammered; unsure of what to say. "I'm gonna go get something to eat." With that, Rosa sprung up from the table.

"If you ever need anyone to talk to; I'm here for you." Maryse reached across the table, and took one of Randy's hands in her own. Like taking candy from a baby.

Or like taking _Randy_ from a baby.


	22. Eve: Accident Waiting To Happen

**ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN  
Eve**

**

* * *

**

Rolling up the sleeves of her long-sleeved crop top, Eve knew that knowing the right amount of layers to wear was crucial as a dance choreographer, as the studio could get so hot sometimes.

"Okay, show me that one you did where you did that high kick, and then..." Alicia was cut off by Eve and Layla simultaneously performing the same move. "Yeah, that's the one! That is so cool!"

Eve was doing her best to mend her relationship with Alicia, and that included inviting Alicia out to lunch with her and Layla. This took a bit of persuading from Maria, however Eve knew in the long run, it would be for the best.

"We'd better get going if we want to get that table." Layla picked her handbag up off the bench, and began walking towards the door, before smiling at Alicia. "That is, unless Eve plans to ditch us for Randy."

"Bros before hoes." Eve shrugged, before realising her mistakes. "No, wait. Chicks before dicks."

"There you go!" Layla smiled, slinging an arm around Eve's shoulder, and then Alicia's, as the threesome made their way out of the studio.

The dance studio was right at the top of the gym building, and there were no elevators, so it was a case of walking down a couple of flights of stairs. "My God, how do you guys do this every day?" Alicia groaned.

"Sometimes we get some of the trainers to give us piggybacks." Layla grinned. "Cody is usually my man of choice, but sometimes..." The threesome were stopped, as they saw someone vaguely familiar coming up the stairs.

Eve wasn't completely sure of who she was. She vaguely recognised her, but she wasn't sure where from. The girl was a fellow Latina – so she appeared – with dark blonde hair and in full gym attire.

"Sorry, we're closing the studio for lunch." Eve assumed maybe she was from one of her dance troupes and was coming for the afternoon class. "The contemporary class starts at two o'clock."

"What're you doing here, Rosa?" It was Alicia who stepped forward, facing off with the mystery girl.

"Rosa?" Eve looked over at Layla, who shrugged. That name sounded so familiar.

"She's a friend of Maryse's." Alicia explained. "Probably here to cause some trouble."

"Actually, I'm here to stop the trouble." Rosa looked surprisingly guilty, and almost shaken up. "It's about you Eve."

"Me?" Eve said, surprised. "What about me?"

"Maryse has taken things too far." Rosa sighed. "It was okay when it was bitchy, but now she's got Randy involved, and it's..."

"Wait, Randy?" Eve held up a hand stopping Rosa in her tracks. "What about Randy? What's Maryse done to Randy?"

"Maryse hates you, Eve. She _really_ hates you, and she basically finds every opportunity she can to do something to spite you." Rosa stopped and took a deep breath. "We were about to leave the gym, and Maryse saw Randy and followed him down to the cafe. It's a long story, but in short, she basically told Randy that she assumed you guys had broken up, because you're cheating on him."

"What? Eve's never cheated..." Layla's voice trailed off, before she yelled. "...Bitch!"

"I know, it's gone too far." Rosa swallowed. "She tried to get me involved, but it got too much so I went to get a drink. When I came back, they were both gone."

"That's insane." Alicia muttered, before looking over at Eve, who'd gone white as a sheet. "Eve, are you okay?"

"I need to call Randy."

* * *

Sat out in her car, Eve's fingers practically shook as she typed Randy's cell phone number into her cell phone. Rosa had filled the girls in on the full 'Martha' story, leaving all the girls in shock. Eve looked over at Alicia in the driver's seat for support, and her friend put a hand on her knee for support.

"It's gonna be okay, you know." Rosa said, reassuringly from the backseat, alongside Layla who nodded encouragingly.

"I hope so." Eve waited for the phone to stop ringing, and put it on speaker so the other three girls could hear what was said.

"_Hello?"_

That was definitely a woman's voice.

"Hello?" Eve said.

"_I was waiting for you to call, Eve." _Maryse said, her voice dripping with venom. _"Let me guess, Rosa came and told you?" _

"You went too far, Maryse!" Rosa called into the phone. "Just stop whatever this sick thing you have planned!"

"_Oh, I'm just getting started." _Maryse responded. _"I'd better go, but if you want to find us, Randy and I are on the way back to his house. We're just stopping for gas. Ciao." _

* * *

"I'll park up." Alicia pulled the car up outside Randy's house. "You guys just get out and hunt that bitch down!"

Eve, Layla and Rosa practically jumped out of the moving vehicle and ran up to the front door, ringing the doorbell erratically, until eventually, Randy came to the door with a confused expression on his face.

"What're you... three doing here?"

"Where's Maryse?" Eve hissed, pushing past Randy and scouring his house for the French-Canadian.

Randy grabbed Eve by the arm. "Eve, I think we need to talk..."

"You went home with Maryse?" Eve held in her tears. "You believe what she has to say, and not me?"

"Maryse? Who's Maryse?" Randy laughed.

"_Randy! Where are you?" _

"Don't act dumb; _that's_ Maryse." Eve followed the voice coming from the upstairs bedroom, closely followed by Layla, Rosa, Randy, and then Alicia from outside.

The moments before Eve pulled open the bedroom door went in slow motion. When she saw Maryse sat on Randy's bed in nothing more than one of his shirts, it was as if the world came to a standstill.

"Nice to see you, Eve." The French-Canadian's smirk was broader than ever.

"How could you?" Eve turned around to look at Randy, who was leaning against the bedroom door, a bleak expression on his face.

Randy stepped forward. "Eve, I..."

Eve slapped Randy right across the cheek, before freezing to look at him. "I really loved you, Randy." She ran back down the stairs and out of his house, before collapsing on the curb in tears.

* * *

"I'd better go check on her." Layla broke the silence that filled the room, before leaving.

The awkward silence returned between Maryse, Alicia, Randy and Rosa; however Maryse didn't seem to care.

"Well, my job here is done." She grinned, putting on her jeans.

"Your job?" Randy turned back to her. "What do you mean, 'your job'?"

"'Martha' is really called Maryse, and she's been lying to you about a hell of a lot more than this." Alicia told Randy, who looked as if he might pass out.

"Eve told..." He sat down on the edge of the bed and put his head in his hands. "I should've known."

"You were a hell of a lot easier to fool than I expected." Maryse grinned. "I didn't even have to sleep with you."

"You're a bitch, Maryse." Alicia shook her head in despair. "You are a bitch, pure and simple."

"Yeah, well you're not so pure either, sweetie." Maryse put a palm in Alicia's face, before turning to her only 'friend' in the room. "Come on, Rosa. Let's go."

"What makes you think I'm gonna go with _you_? You make me sick." Rosa took one last look at Maryse, before leaving Randy's house. Maryse, however, decided to follow her out.

"She's gone." Layla came back into the bedroom, and sat down on the edge of the bed next to Randy. "I can't find Eve anywhere.

"I made a mistake, didn't I?" Randy looked up at Alicia.

"Do you love her?" Alicia asked.

"Of course I do."

Layla smiled. "Then we're going to help you win her back."


	23. Alicia: How You Remind Me

As well as leaving a review, it would mean a lot if you could take the **poll on my profile**  
concerning the next fic I plan to publish. Seeing as there are only going to be 7 - 8 including this one-  
chapters left of this fic, it's time to make a start on a new one  
It'll take like... 2 minutes to do the poll, and would mean a **hell** of a lot. Thanks. XX

* * *

**HOW YOU REMIND ME  
Alicia**

* * *

Waking up on the floor of Eve's bedroom in a sleeping bag, Alicia smiled, as she thought about how this was the first time she'd done something like this in years. After a couple of seconds, her smile faded, as her sore back made her realise there was a reason for this.

After coming home from Randy's house, Alicia – along with Maria - had spent the night comforting Eve. They did it all; Ice-cream, red wine, chick flicks; the whole heartache shebang. All Alicia knew was she never wanted to look at a bowl of Ben and Jerry's again.

"Maria," Alicia sat upright, and gently shook the redhead who was sleeping soundly next to her.

"What's up?" She managed to say, rather throatily, before peeling her eyes open to look up at Alicia.

"Ria, I've got to go." Alicia stood up, and picked up her jacket which was streamed over the side of Eve's bed.

"It's only eight o'clock." Maria squinted at the clock on the wall. Without her contact lenses, she was as blind as a bat.

"I want to go home for a shower and I need to get changed. I've been wearing the same clothes for two days." Alicia shuddered, as if she was uncomfortable in her own skin. "Tell Eve I'll come see her later."

Alicia went over to the bed and kissed her sleeping friend on the cheek, before going downstairs and closing the front door behind her with a gentle click.

* * *

Sitting at her desk, Alicia's brain felt like mush. It was like she was caught somewhere between a lack of sleep, and having a hangover, but her mind couldn't decide where it would rather be.

"Someone looks cheerful." Tiffany said from her desk, as she watched her best friend sat with her head in her hands. "What's your problem?" Since their brief fallout, the pair had managed to make amends, and their relationship was restored to its original state.

"I slept on Eve's bedroom floor last night after a heartache session." Alicia explained, checking her reflection in her pocket mirror.

"Headache session?"

"I think Eve and Randy are finished." Alicia didn't want to say it out loud, because it was as if saying it made it true.

"No!" Tiffany's mouth fell open. "What's happened?"

So Alicia went through the whole story. At least, everything she could remember, considering her splitting headache. With every new detail Alicia added. Tiffany looked as if her eyes were about to pop out of her head.

"But they were so good together." Tiffany said sadly, once Alicia was finished. "I can't believe it."

"It sucks, because they were so..."

The door of the office flung open, and Alicia – stopped in her tracks – groaned, as she saw Adam coming through the door, smiling at her.

"...So perfect together." Alicia finished bitterly.

When you see exes again, aren't you supposed to be looking fabulous, in an attempt to show them what they were missing? Today was definitely not the day for that, as Alicia sat with bags under her eyes and her hair even more untamed than usual.

"Was there something you wanted, Adam?" Alicia stood up and smoothed the creases out of her shirt, waiting for a response from him. "Because I'm quite busy right now. All wedding business goes through Tiffany at the moment."

"Actually, I've got to go sort out some financial work, so you'll have to deal with Adam now." Tiffany got up and made her way over to the door." "But I'll be back in an hour."

Tiffany blew her friend a kiss, and left the office; Alicia instantly regretted not telling Tiffany about her and Adam.

Adam sat down on the chair in front of Alicia's desk. "We need to talk."

* * *

Alicia picked up her coffee cup, and sipped the scolding liquid, hoping it would fuel her with the energy she needed. She watched Adam sat in front of her, staring straight back at her.

"I don't know what you can say that will make this better." Alicia said, pouting stoutly. "I don't think we're in forgiveness territory."

"Forgiveness?" A loud, pitying laugh escaped Adam's mouth. "Who said anything about forgiveness?"

"Do you need a recap? You had the nerve to sleep with my best friend – _former_ best friend – and you're not even going to apologize?" Alicia hissed. _Walls have ears._

"Oh, because this relationship was really built on honesty and good intentions, wasn't it?" Adam said, sarcastically. "Come on, Leesh; you know this was about sex, and not a lot else."

"But my best friend?" Alicia spat out. "There's a difference between sleeping around, and sleeping within a friendship circle. You crossed a sick line."

"Please, you know you can't stay away from me." Adam sat back in his chair, cockily. "You'll be coming round my house and begging for a little bit of Edge."

"Edge?"

"It's a new nickname I'm trying out."

"Cool." Alicia rolled her eyes without even attempting to conceal how lame she thought he was. "Was there anything you wanted, or have you just come to act like a jackass?"

"Well, Vickie wanted me to pick up something that was delivered here." Adam shrugged, nonchalantly.

Alicia dug under her desk, and thrust the package into Adam's hands. "I hope it turns out to be a bomb."

"And I hope you'll be able to attend our wedding." Adam said with a sweet smile.

"You'll be there, won't you Alicia?"

Both Adam and Alicia abruptly turned their heads, and realised Vickie was standing in the doorway, smiling innocently at the pair of them.

"Oh... o-of course." Alicia managed to stutter, before fumbling through a heap of paperwork.

"Go wait in the car; I'll be out in a minute." Vickie instructed Adam, who obliged, but not before shooting Alicia a look of pure evil.

* * *

"Sit down." Alicia signalled at the chair Adam had previously been sat in. "What's up?"

Vickie took Alicia's hands in her own. "You and Tiffany have been brilliant these past few months, and with the wedding only a week away, I just wanted to thank you."

Alicia took back her hands, a feeling of guilt taking over her insides. "It's my job, Vickie; I'd do the same for anyone else."

"Well, you're very good at your job then." Vickie continued, looking down at the floor. "A couple of years ago, my husband Eddie died of a heart attack."

"I'm so sorry." Alicia decided this was a good time to put her hands back in Vickie's; she looked like she needed some comfort.

"I never thought I'd find happiness again, but isn't it strange how you find it in the most random places?" Vickie paused and looked up at the ceiling, almost as if she were looking straight into Eddie's eyes. "He'll always be my one true love, and he will _always_ hold a place in my heart, but it's time to move on, y'know?"

"It's time to move on." Alicia repeated.

Those words had never seemed so relevant, or so true.


	24. Maria: What I Hate About You

**WHAT I HATE ABOUT YOU  
Maria**

* * *

Maria turned down the volume on her stereo, as she continued to clear out the bits and bobs she found cluttered in her room. She was the kind of person that would buy something that caught their eye – anything with bright colours or prints, usually – meaning she had **a lot** of crap lying around.

"You suck at organisation." Eve rolled her eyes at her friend, before pointing to a hair accessory she found on Maria's desk. "What about this? I've _never_ seen you wear this."

"Firstly, I'm not unorganised; you're just a tidying freak. And secondly..." Maria picked up the oversized black flower hairclip. "I could so wear this."

Eve snatched it off Maria and threw it in the bin. "It's gone. God you're messy..."

Ever since things had ended with Randy, Eve had definitely been looking for ways to distract herself - whether it was baking, tidying, or just downloading a hell of a lot of depressing songs for her iPod, Eve had become obsessed with keeping Randy off her mind.

"Why don't you sort through the drawers, and I'll do the wardrobe?" Eve suggested, already rifling through a sea of tops and dresses.

Maria pulled out the three drawers from her desk, laying them out on her bed. She had to admit, Eve did have a point; she was messy. The piles of belongings only seemed to increase – jewellery, CDs, photos...There was one particular photo which made Maria freeze in her tracks.

"Why're you stopping?" Eve turned around and looked over at Maria, whose eyes had gone misty looking at the Polaroid. "Oh."

The photo was taken about three years ago, and but Maria remembered it like it was yesterday. It was a really hot day – even for L.A – and the water in the house turned off. She and Jeff - as well as Eve and her boyfriend at the time - spent almost the whole day in the swimming pool, desperate to keep cool. Eve got out of the pool and went to get her new Polaroid camera, before practically blinding them with the flash.

"It's for the best, you know."

"We look so happy in that photo." Jeff hadn't changed a lot, however Maria observed how young she looked; her hair wasn't even red – more of a mousy brown – and her green eyes glowed with love, as she planted a kiss on Jeff's cheek.

"Perhaps it's time to find someone new." Eve said gently, resting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"I tried that; it wasn't enough." Maria felt a pang of guilt, as she thought about John, and how badly she'd treated him.

"Why wasn't John enough?" Eve asked. "He was a great guy, and he treated you like a princess..."

"But Jeff..."

"Jeff's never gonna change!" Eve's voice got louder, and more angry, making Maria wince slightly. "He's always going to be the same commitment-phobic he's always been!"

Silence settled around the room, as Maria sank down onto her bed, and watched Eve, who leant against Maria's wardrobe, as if her own problems were pushing her down.

"It's gonna be okay, Eve." Maria got up and walked towards her friend.

"It sure doesn't feel that way." Eve whispered, before leaving the room. Maria looked out of the window and saw her friend take her car out of the driveway and speeding down the road.

* * *

The sun beating down from the bright blue sky warmed up Maria's skin, as she lay on the grass in a pair of denim shorts and a bikini top. Maria had discovered cleaning on her own was boring, and she'd given up and decided sunbathing would be much more productive.

Originally from windy Illinois, Maria loved the fact that L.A was sunny every day. Just being able to lie in her back garden was a luxury to her; however she did feel a twang of guilt when she thought of her family members freezing back in Ottawa.

Maria got up, and walked through the patio doors to get herself a drink. Pulling open the door of the fridge, she pulled out a carton of orange juice, poured it into a glass, before adding a few ice cubes. Nothing better than a cold drink on a summer's day...

Suddenly, Maria's line of vision was caught, as there was a figure stood the other side of the window, watching her as she sipped her juice. Caught off guard, Maria dropped the glass on the ground, not even acknowledging as it smashed into pieces.

"The back door was open." Jeff explained, as Maria went out into the garden to confront him. When they were dating, he always entered her house through the back door.

"Yeah, well things are different now." Maria huffed, putting her sunglasses on to shield herself from Jeff's quizzing eyes, before sitting down on one of the sun loungers.

"Ria, what's your problem?" Jeff asked.

Perhaps she had to tell him. "You're not making this easy for me."

"Making what easy for you?"

Maria sighed, taking her sunglasses off again. "I'm trying my best, but it's too hard to get over you. And no matter who I date, or who I fall for; I always compare them to you."

Jeff stood, stunned in his tracks. His mouth dropped slightly, as he watched Maria with apprehension. "Maria..."

She stood up from her chair, and walked towards the doors. "But if you're just going to break my heart, then perhaps it's time I got over you."

"Maria!" Jeff grabbed the redhead by the arm, making the tiny hairs on it stand up.

"What?!" Maria yelled, yanking her arm away, however Jeff only responded by holding onto her shoulders.

"Are you over me?" Silence was Maria's only response. "Because I'm not over you."

Two pairs of eyes collided, as Maria could feel the colour rising in her cheeks. "You're not..." Her sentence was cut off by Jeff's lips falling into hers.


	25. We're Going Down

**WE'RE GOING DOWN**

* * *

"I brought more supplies." Maria came into the living room, holding up a carrier bag filled with Ben and Jerry's ice cream tubes and bottles of red wine. The girls were big on bonding, but none of their previous sessions had been quite this depressing, or fattening.

"This sucks." Eve stuck her spoon into a tub of Phish Food, putting it in her mouth.. "I had this great guy that I was totally falling for, and just like that," Eve snapped her fingers. "It's all over."

"At least your guy wasn't off limits!" Alicia cracked open a new bottle of wine, as she watched Eve down the contents of the previous one straight from the bottle. "Adam was a taken man, and I slept with him – numerous times! – and then his fiancée confides in me." Her conversation with Vickie had left a mark on Alicia.

Maria felt herself being dragged into her best friends' cycle of sadness. "I thought I was over him." She sat down on the floor between Alicia and Eve. "I had this wonderful guy but then I ruin things with him because I'm still hung up over Jeff – this guy that treats me like dirt. Jeff comes around here and kisses me, tells me he's not over me and now I don't know what to do."

None of the girls were really listening to each other, as they were all way to hung up in their own problems. Their relationships were in tatters, and all they could do was sit around feeling sorry for themselves.

"Shall I get out The Notebook?" Maria scrambled over to the DVD cupboard. It was definitely their relationships-in-tatters failsafe film.

"This sucks." Alicia didn't answer Maria's question. "When did things get so sucky?"

"When Maryse came into our lives." Eve responded, bitterly. "First she slept with Adam, and then she slept with Randy..."

"Maryse didn't sleep with John or Jeff." Maria pointed out.

"No, but she did play Candice against you, remember?"

Rarely one to lose her temper, there was something about Maryse that infuriated the redhead. "Y'know, this is stupid. We shouldn't be sitting around moping; we should be enjoying life, and not letting Maryse hold us back."

"Maria's right." Eve stood up and pulled her hair out of its scruffy bun. "We're already partially drunk; I say we get dressed up like total sluts, get absolutely wrecked and forget our troubles." She smiled at Alicia, who nodded encouragingly.

Maria shook her head at the pair of them; Eve must've been wasted, as this was far from the good girl she knew. Either way, Maria could tell their night would end in trouble.

* * *

The sound of _Ke$ha_ blared through the dark club, as Eve lost herself in the music.

She'd never been to this place before, but there was something hypnotising about the thumping electro music and the flashing green strobe lights. Eve wasn't entirely sure whether the person she was dancing with was a very feminine boy, or a very butch girl, but at the point in time, she didn't care.

As she looked over at her friends, Alicia and Maria were both dancing with the same guy, pretty much grinding against the lucky boy. Perhaps _**Buy One Get One Free**_ shots weren't necessarily the best idea.

"I've gotta get going!" Eve called into the boy/girl's ear.

"We should totally get together at some time." They called back, still dancing.

"Sure." Eve lied, realising it was actually a girl, as she danced her way through a crowd of people towards her two friends.

"_Eeeeeeve_!" Alicia – a very excitable drunk - squealed, grabbing her friend by the arm. "Come dance with us!"

"Maybe later, have you seen who's come in?" Eve pointed over to the doorway.

"Maryse." Alicia huffed, as she watched the French-Canadian saunter into the club, closely followed by her model entourage.

Eve noted that Maryse's former best friend Rosa was absent. Rosa said she'd never speak to Maryse again, but Eve didn't really believe she actually wouldn't.

"What a bitch." Maria – the most sober of the three - rolled her eyes, however she stiffened as she saw the death stare on Eve's face. "Eve, just ignore her."

"I have to say something to her." Eve took Maria's drink out of her hand, draining the liquid before storming over to Maryse.

"Look who it is," Maryse turned to her friend Natalya and smirked, before shooting Eve a pitying look. "Little Miss Perfect. Well, you're not so perfect anymore."

"I don't know who you think you are, but..." Eve slurred.

"But what?" Natalya chipped in. She looked pretty tough. "What're you gonna do about it?"

"Eve," Maria placed a hand on her friends arm. "Let's go."

"Let her talk." Maryse pointed a finger at Eve. "Come on, Eve. What _are_ you going to do about it?"

* * *

"I did NOT expect you to do _that._" A series of flashbacks ran through Alicia's head, as she, Eve and Maria sat on the curb outside the club.

It all started with Eve punching Maryse right in the mouth and blood pouring from Maryse's lip, and finishing with Eve being escorted out by a scary looking security guard. Maria and Alicia followed rather sheepishly.

"I've never hit someone before, but that felt pretty good." Eve admitted, a smile creeping onto her face. "But now we've got to find somewhere else to go."

"The boxing gym to get you some classes?" Maria suggested, sarcastically.

"What the hell are you guys doing on the curb?" All three girls looked up to see Maryse's girlfriend Mike and his friend John Morrison stood on the sidewalk, looking down at the three girls in confusion.

"Eve punched your girlfriend and got us kicked out." Maria replied, holding out a hand so John could pull her up.

"I missed a chick fight? Damn." John sighed, before looking at Mike. "We should probably go check on your girlfriend."

"Before you go," Alicia stood up, and stood next to Mike. "I've got something to tell you about your girlfriend which you might not like."

* * *

Please leave a review :) XX


	26. Maryse: Who You Really Are

As there's probably about 4 chapters left of the story, I'm sad to say this is the last time I'll be writing as Maryse :( I'll miss being the bitch!  
As usual, please leave a **review** and take the **poll** on my profile  
Thankssss X

* * *

**WHO YOU REALLY ARE  
Maryse**

* * *

The sunlight streamed through the curtains in Maryse's living room, waking her up from her deep sleep. After coming home in the early hours of the morning, she'd crashed out on her couch and fallen asleep within minutes. Maryse looked down at the creased dress she'd fallen asleep in.

_This was freakin' expensive..._ She groaned, before standing up and making her way to the kitchen, in search of a cup of black coffee.

Turning on the kettle, she recalled the events of the night before. She instantly remembered a very drunk Eve taking a swing and busting her lip wide open. It was certainly a shock to her, but she couldn't help but admire Eve; Maryse didn't think she had it in her.

"Fuck." Maryse muttered, as the hot liquid burnt at her swollen lip, hitting a nerve. "Silly bitch."

Before she could take another sip, a knock at the door stopped Maryse in her tracks. After another groan, she grabbed a bathrobe which was handily slung over one of the chairs in the kitchen, as well as a pair of sunglasses balanced in the windowsill.

She wrapped the bathrobe around her slender frame, and covered her heavy eyes with the sunglasses, before making her way to the door. Peeking through the misty glass, she was surprised to see Mike on her doorstep.

"Baby, what're you doing here?" Maryse smiled as sweetly as possible, despite the fact she really wasn't in the mood to talk to him. "It's only nine o'clock."

Mike did _not_ look happy; his eyes were stern, and there was a slight grimace spreading across his face. "We need to talk."

* * *

Maryse led Mike into the kitchen, and began talking to him half-heartedly, as she sorted out her breakfast. "Did you want coffee? Because I just put on a pot, and I don't want it all. You know there are cups in the-"

"Have you cheated on me?"

It was mainly Mike's tone that caught Maryse off guard, as she almost dropped the coffee pot she was holding.

This was definitely not the day for him to be testing her patience. Maryse sat down in one of the chairs next to him, and rested a hand on his arm. "Sweetie-"

"Just answer the question." Mike demanded, nudging his arm away.

"Sweetie, why do you think this?" She did her best to be sweet.

"I bumped into Eve, Maria and Alicia outside the club last night-" Crap_._ "-and Alicia started telling me all about how you slept with Adam and Randy - in pretty good detail, too."

As much as Maryse wanted to protest her innocence, she didn't think she could. Perhaps silence would be her best defence...

"So it's true." Mike nodded bitterly, his grimace now a full-blown scowl. He stood up; his hands glued to the back of his head and walked towards the window. "How many guys were there?"

Maryse stood up and walked towards him. "Does it really matter?"

"Of course it matters!" Mike yelled back. "Stop dodging and just answer my question!"

"There was only one guy."

"Randy?"

"No. Adam."

"And what about Randy?"

"I never slept with Randy!"

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"Because if I've already told you about Adam, why would I defend myself when it comes to Randy?" Maryse snapped back, right up in Mike's face. "There was only one guy, because after I slept with Adam, I felt so guilty because I thought I'd fallen in love with you!"

* * *

A stunned silence settled between Mike and Maryse, as both were shocked by the words that had come out of the blonde's mouth. She'd always been so elusive, so distant, yet she was admitting she loved him? She could barely believe it herself.

"You love me?" Mike said, sitting back down in the chair. "Do you love me?"

"I said I _thought_ I'd fallen in love with you." Maryse responded, quickly, and with a hint of coldness. "That's very different to loving you."

"Typical Maryse." Mike shook his head, a laugh coming out of his mouth. "You finally find someone who can be comfortable with, and you turn them away."

"You think you know me so well, don't you?" Maryse hissed from the other side of the kitchen table. "You don't know me at all. You were never anything to me; you were just my arm candy, and an excuse to piss off the bitches across the street."

* * *

"If that's what helps you sleep better at night, you keep on thinking that." Mike got up from his chair and made his way to the front door. "Hell, you can even say you broke up with me if it boosts you're ego. I want you out of my life, because I've already moved on."

"What do you mean, 'already moved on'?" Maryse yelled, as she followed Mike down the garden path and down to an unfamiliar red sports car. "Is that your car?"

"It's my baby." Mike paused. "In more ways than one."

He tapped on the driver's door, and the window slowly unwound, revealing a smug looking Kelly.

"Kelly?!" Maryse spat in both shock and disgust. "You're back with Kelly?"

"Sucks to be you, doesn't it Maryse?" Kelly smiled sweetly, getting out of the car and allowing Mike to sit in the driver's seat. "Come on baby, I think you've wasted enough time here."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Maryse screeched.

"I don't speak French, Maryse, but I do speak smack talk. And a little Spanish." Kelly added, squaring up to her fellow blonde. "What's it they say? Oh yeah; _hasta la vista, baby._"

All Maryse could do was watch as the blonde stepped back into the car and speed off down the road.


	27. Eve: Be Mine

We're getting to the end... Please review :)

* * *

**BE MINE  
Eve**

* * *

Pulling into the parking lot of the gym, Eve felt her stomach churn as she noticed Randy's car parked in its usual spot by the entrance. The idea of just casually bumping into him terrified her. She hadn't spoken to him since they'd broken up; what would she say to him?

She was still heartbroken, no matter how much she tried to deny it. She'd fallen for him, and she'd got hurt. As much as she wanted to turn her car around and go home, her priority would have to be getting paid.

Before the Latina could even open her car door, she noticed Layla coming towards her from the entrance. "Eve!"

"Lay, what're you doing?" Eve stepped out of her car, and got her bag off the backseat. "Shouldn't you be 'limbering up' inside?"

"Studio's closed." Layla got into the passenger seat of the car. "I'm thinking we go shopping for the day."

"Why's the studio closed?"

"I dunno, cleaning or something." Layla shrugged quickly. "Besides, who cares? It means we get a day off, and there's a Fendi purse on Rodeo that's calling out to me."

Getting back into her car, Eve felt a sense of relief rush over her. At least there was no chance of bumping into Randy on Rodeo Drive. Or at least, a very small chance.

* * *

"So how're you holding up?" Layla asked gently, as she and Eve sat in a kitsch cafe after a morning of shopping. "I mean, since the whole Randy thing."

"Fine." Eve muttered, using her fork to push her salad around the plate. She'd definitely lost her appetite since the break-up.

"Really?" Layla raised in inquisitive eyebrow. "Come on Eve, this is me you're talking to. I want the _real_ truth; none of that B.S you tell your parents on the phone."

"How do you know what I tell my parents?"

"Duh, Maria." Layla replied. "She says you're always saying how 'you're doing just fine now you're single again.'"

Eve smiled. She pushed her plate of food to the side, and looked up at her friend. "I hate this. I miss him _so_ much, all day, everyday. He made me so happy, y'know?"

Layla reached across the table to hold her friend's hand in her own, as a single tear slipped through one of Eve's eyes. Eve hadn't told anyone how she'd _really_ been feeling, and finally admitting it made it seem a lot more real.

"Everything just seems so much worse now he's gone."

"You don't think there's any chance of you guys getting back together?" Layla asked with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

"He slept with Maryse." There was a note of desperation in Eve's voice, as she recalled the memories that killed her inside. "I don't know if I can forgive that."

Layla paused to take in the information given to her, nodding slightly. She then looked across at Eve's plate of food. "Are you gonna finish that? I left my jacket at the studio, and I need to go pick it up."

* * *

"Y'know, the day they move us down to the ground floor of the gym, I'm gonna be so happy." Eve sighed, as she and Layla made their way up the long flight of stairs leading to the dance studio.

"Tell me about it." Layla muttered absent mindedly, as she made her way towards the door, before pausing as her hand clasped the handle. "Are you ready?"

"For what?" Eve asked, wondering what her friend was going on about. Layla tapped on the door, and opened it up, letting Eve in on the surprise she'd been cooking up for her.

All the lights in the studio were turned off, and it was purely lit by candlelight, with her favourite flowers – yellow carnations – scattered everywhere. In the middle of the floor was a picnic rug, with a wicker basket set up next to it. It was like nothing Eve had ever seen before. It was beautiful.

"I think I owe you an explanation." Randy said, from the chair he was sat on. "Will you hear me out?" Eve was speechless, so all she could do was nod. "Thanks Layla." Randy winked at the British beauty.

"I'll leave you kids alone." Layla couldn't conceal her grin, as she shut the pair inside the studio.

* * *

"Your friends said old-fashioned romance was your thing." Randy smiled, as Eve sat down on the picnic rug, and he joined her. "Do you like it?"

"It's lovely." Eve commented, looking around the studio. "Did you do it all yourself?"

"Layla, Maria and Alicia helped me plan it. Ted and Cody said they would help set it up, but they just had breadstick fights." Randy paused, reaching across and clasping one of Eve's hands in his own. "I love you, Eve-"

"I need to know what happened with Maryse." Eve snatched her hand away; letting her guard down was difficult. "I love you, but you broke my heart."

"I never slept with Maryse." Randy claimed. "I swear down to you, I never even kissed her. Believe me, I wanted to, because I was so angry with you, but I couldn't go through with it. She wasn't you, and no-one else ever will be."

Eve smiled, reaching across and kissing Randy on the cheek. "You have no idea how happy you've made me."

"This might be a long-shot, but is there any chance things could go back to the way they were?" Randy asked. "Eve, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and after having you both in and out of my life, I know which one I prefer."

"I'm not sure, there's more room in my bed now," Eve giggled. "But less room in bed is a sacrifice I'm willing to make if you're there."

"You've turned soft on me, Torres." Randy grinned, leaning across and kissing Eve on the lips. She'd missed those lips. She'd missed him.

"Excuse me, _I've _turned soft? Have you seen the amount of candles in here?" Eve prodded him in the chest, lovingly. Yep, she'd definitely missed this. "Which, by the way, must be a _major_ fire hazard?"


	28. Alicia: You May Now Kiss The Bride?

Third to last chapter... dun dun dunnnn!

* * *

**YOU MAY NOW KISS THE... BRIDE?  
Alicia**

* * *

Alicia checked her reflection in the mirror one last time. Despite how dire she felt, she couldn't deny the fact she was totally working the tortured mistress look. Her usually wild curls had been tamed into a demure bun, and her knee-length black dress added to the black of her mood. She took a deep breath and smoothed out the silky fabric.

"You look cute." Tiffany stuck her head around the bathroom door.

"You do too." Alicia smiled back, however she couldn't help but notice something different about her friend's appearance. She hadn't put on weight; she couldn't put her finger on it.

"You ready to go?"

It was the day of Adam's wedding, and she couldn't hide away any longer.

-

"Do you, Adam Copeland, take Vickie Guerrero to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The vicar's words rang throughout the church, as Alicia tried her best to focus on the ceremony, and not on the guilty feeling which sat in the pit of her stomach.

She wasn't the bad guy; she and Adam were through, yet she still felt horrible. Instead, Alicia looked around the church. She couldn't deny that she and Tiffany had done a good job.

"Vickie looks beautiful, doesn't she?" Tiffany whispered into Alicia's ear, a tear falling from the blonde's eye. Tiffany was always soppy, but this was a little extreme.

"Have you turned soft?" Alicia whispered back.

"Maybe." The blonde smiled, whipping away the tear. "But you have to agree with me." Alicia did agree. Sure, Vickie had chosen the perfect dress, but it was the happy expression on her face which really made her a beautiful bride.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to present to you, Mr and Mrs Adam Copeland!"

Alicia just wished she had the confidence to tell her the truth.

* * *

_The worst part was over,_ Alicia told herself, as she sat in the hotel where the reception was being held. The food had been served, the speeches were over and done, and now most were busting some rather cringe-worthy moves on the dance floor. She downed a glass of complimentary champagne, pleased at how well she'd got through the day.

"Don't you want something stronger?" Alicia signalled at the glass of orange juice sat in front of Tiffany; it was odd, her friend was never one to turn down a drink.

She didn't say anything, but smiling, she rested her hands on her slightly rounded stomach. The light bulb clicked on in Alicia's head.

A smile crept onto Alicia's face. "Tiff, are you-?"

"Pregnant!"

"Is it for sure?"

"I've taken like, ten tests, and nine of those came out positive!" Tiffany confirmed. "Jack and I are having a baby!"

Both women let out squeals so high that they could only be heard by dogs, however as Alicia reached over to hug Tiffany, the glass of orange juice tipped over, splattering liquid over Tiffany's cream dress.

"Shit, I'm so sorry!" Alicia exclaimed. "Oh my God, I've ruined your dress."

"It's fine, I can wash it out when I get home." Tiffany shrugged. "Actually, I've still got my dress from the Smith wedding last week in the trunk of my car; I'll go get it."

"No way, I'll go." Alicia replied, digging into her friend's bag and pulling out her car keys. "I'll be right back."

The cold night air was refreshing, as Alicia made her way out of the hotel and into the parking lot. Her brown eyes scanned the sea of cars, until she laid eyes on Tiffany's convertible, making her way towards it.

Just as she opened up the trunk, Alicia's attention was caught by something other than Tiffany's dress. She could hear people nearby, giggling, and-

"Oh my God, get a room!" She laughed into the darkness, continuing to look for the dress.

"Alicia?" A figure emerged in the darkness, and Alicia was surprised to realise it was Adam. Surprised turned to sickened, as she realised it wasn't Vickie he was with.

"What the hell are you doing?" Alicia exclaimed, as Adam was closely followed out by a redhead, with a large tattoo covering one of her arms. Alicia had a feeling they'd met earlier that day, she was called Amy Dumas. "This is your wedding day."

"Listen sweetie," Amy began. "Why don't you go inside like a good little girl, and forget anything you ever saw out here."

Alicia felt slightly threatened by this woman, but she knew she couldn't turn to Adam for support. He wasn't hers anymore, in fact, he never really was.

"God you're a sicko." Alicia muttered, continuing to search for the dress.

"You heard her," Adam shrugged, putting an arm around Amy's shoulder. "Go back inside, Alicia."

Alicia looked at Amy, then back at Adam. No emotion there; they were both blank, almost pitying of the girl in front of them.

"Fine." Alicia picked up the dress, slammed the trunk shut and stalked back into the party, wondering why she'd just been pushed around.

* * *

Re-entering the hotel, Alicia noticed that Tiffany was sat in the lobby, looking a little worse for wear. She looked pale, and drawn out.

"What's wrong?" Alicia sat down next to her friend.

"I think I ate something the baby disagreed with." Tiffany laughed lightly. "Do you mind if I leave? I've already heaved once, and I only just made it to the bathroom. I don't want to risk doing it again."

"I'll come with you." Alicia said, but before either woman could make a quick escape, they were caught by Vickie.

"Are you two leaving? I haven't even had the chance to thank you both for all the hard work you've put in." Vickie smiled, giving them both hugs.

"It's no problem at all." Tiffany smiled lightly. "As long as you're happy."

Vickie's smile only spread. "Adam is a great guy, I've never been so happy in my life."

Alicia couldn't listen to this anymore. "He's with another woman in the parking lot right this second!"


	29. Maria: Game Over

Second to last chapter... whaaaat?  
Hope you enjoy, and please review :) X

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**GAME OVER  
Maria**

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Looking out of her bedroom window, Maria's gaze followed Jeff up the street and down the pathway towards her front door. She didn't know if she could talk to him or not, and wondered whether Eve would have the common sense to turn him away.

Maria then noticed Eve's car was absent from the driveway. She hadn't seen her roommate since that morning, and wondered whether hers, Layla's and Alicia's plan to get Eve back together with Randy had worked.

"Crap." Maria muttered, as she heard the doorbell ring. She quickly pulled her hair out of its ponytail, and ruffled her red curls before heading downstairs, only opening the door far enough that she could stick her head around.

"We really need to talk." Jeff was stood nonchalantly with his hands in his pockets leading Maria to wonder why he was so relaxed. Did this mean nothing to him?

"Well, I don't really want to talk to you." Maria attempted to shut the door; however Jeff stuck his foot in the gap between the door and the wall, so it couldn't be closed. She sighed deeply, as if bored of his games. "Jeff, go away."

"Let me in, Ria." His voice was steady and calm, as he kept his eyes focused on her until she fully opened the door. "There, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Don't patronize me." She retorted angrily, pointing a finger at him. "I said I didn't want to talk to you; I think we've both caused enough trouble."

"Trouble?" Jeff queried innocently.

"You're with Candice, and-"

"Candice broke up with me three days ago." Jeff revealed, pushing his way into her living room. "She told me it wasn't working."

"Did she tell you why?" Maria had a fair idea, as she thought back to her conversation with Candice at the photoshoot a couple of weeks ago.

Jeff shook his head.

"Well, I'm sorry, but I don't have anything to say to you." Maria folded her arms across her chest. "And if that's all you have to say, I'm going to go back upstairs, and I'll leave you to show yourself out." She stalked off upstairs to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

* * *

Maria was unsure of how long she was sat on the edge of her bed with her head in her hands; she'd had a lot of thinking to do. She was sick of having her heart messed with, and sick of always being the one getting hurt. She contemplated how long this would last, praying for the day it would finally end.

A knock on the door, and Jeff's voice from the other side stopped her thoughts. "Can I come in?" He didn't wait for a response, walking into the room.

"I can't do this anymore." Maria looked up at Jeff, her voice small and strained. She felt weak from her heartache. "I can't play this stupid game anymore, it's too stressful. It's not making any of us happy, and in the end, we're all just going to get hurt."

Jeff paused for a moment, before pulling Maria up by the hand. "That's a risk I'm willing to take." He rested his hands on her waist and planted a firm kiss on Maria's lips, making her buckle at the knees.

There were many more kisses that followed; breathless kisses, and Maria manoeuvred Jeff over to the bed and pulled him down on top of her. His arms wrapped around her slender frame, burning holes through the thin fabric of her t-shirt. Her t-shirt wasn't a problem anymore, as Jeff quickly discarded it.

"We shouldn't be doing this." Maria panted, however she was cut off by Jeff's lips.

Jeff pulled off his own t-shirt. "If you tell me that it's over, and you want me to leave you, then I will. I'll walk out of this room right now, and you'll never see me again."

Maria bit down on her lip, an apprehensive look spreading across her face.

"Maria?" Jeff got up, and picked up his t-shirt. "Do you want that?"

She got up, and took his t-shirt out of his hand, flinging it back down on the floor. "I don't want you to go."

* * *

The sun setting over L.A was visible from Maria's bedroom window, as the evening drew in. Maria climbed out of bed and pulled a bathrobe around her slender frame, before sitting down on the windowsill and looking out over the purple Hollywood sky.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Jeff commented from the bed. Her eyes focused out the window, Maria assumed he was talking about the sunset, but he was looking straight at her.

"It is." She responded.

"Come over here, Ria."

Maria walked over and sat down on the edge of her bed, playing with the tassels on the edge of her throw. "If we do this again, I need an answer Jeff."

"An answer?"

"I can't be broken-hearted anymore; it's all or nothing with me." Maria said bluntly. "No more games, no more playing around."

Jeff nodded slightly, unsure of how to react.

"So what's it gonna be, Jeff? All or nothing?"


	30. The Morning After

Last chapter? Here it is :)

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THE MORNING AFTER

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"You're coming in for breakfast, right?" Eve laced her fingers through Randy's, as he walked her to her doorstep. She'd spent the night at his house, but that didn't mean they had to say goodbye _just_ yet.

"Breakfast?" Randy paused, putting on a 'thinking face'. "Well, it depends on what's on the menu."

"Well, there will _definitely_ be coffee, and muffins, but I had something different in mind." A smile spread across Eve's face. "It's only nine o'clock, so it's unlikely we'll see Maria for another five hours. So I'm thinking-"

The brunette didn't even finish her sentence, as Randy's arm slipped around Eve's waist, and his lips crushed against hers. As much as she wanted to kiss him, Eve couldn't because she was too busy smiling. She and Randy were going to be just fine, and knowing that made her ludicrously happy.

"Is it too early for dessert?" Randy licked his lips before leaning in to kiss Eve again. She hitched herself up so her legs were wrapped around her waist, as she handed him they keys so he could unlock the door for her. Eve had never had sex on her kitchen counter, but there's a first for-

"Maria?" Randy almost dropped Eve at the sight of the redhead sat up at the kitchen table so early in the morning. She was wearing an oversized t-shirt, a pair of fluffy slippers, and her red hair was wavy and unkept, so different to its usual immaculateness.

"Good morning." The chirpy redhead picked up her cereal bowl, and put it in the bowl of soapy water in the sink. "I'm making pancakes, did you guys want any?"

"Pancakes for one? Someone's adventurous." Randy grinned.

"Actually-" Maria didn't need to finish her sentence, as the sound of footsteps on the landing brought a deafening silence into the kitchen. The footsteps then came closer, as Jeff Hardy appeared in the doorway of the kitchen, looking like a very happy chap.

"Wow, I didn't realise we were having a party." He approached Maria and wrapped his arms around her waist, as she began washing up the dishes. "How're you, sweetie?"

"I'm good. Jeff, why don't you and Randy go somewhere else for breakfast? I think Maria and I have some-" Maria blushed, as she looked for the right way to say her sentence. "-catching up to do."

"Sure." Jeff nodded, before kissing her on the cheek. "I'll call you later."

"I guess dessert will have to wait until this evening." Eve winked, blowing Randy a kiss.

Randy and Jeff shook their heads as they walked out the door. "I've never understood chicks."

* * *

"So you and Randy are back together?" Maria asked curiously, scooping a pancake onto Eve's plate, as the brunette had described her perfect day and night with Randy. "His little romantic plan worked?"

"Is it possible to love him even more? It was so sweet." Eve smiled, reminiscing on her incredible twenty-four hours. "And I hear you played a small part in it?"

"I told him your favourite flowers were yellow carnations, and that's about the extent of me and my Cupid-ness." Maria corrected, holding up her hands. "It was pretty much all Randy."

"Well, thank you very much, but as much as I'm enjoying talking about myself, I'm more interested in hearing about you and Jeff." Eve raised an eyebrow. "So tell me. I was a little surprised to see him in our house this morning. What's going on? Are you guys...?"

"I think so." A smile crept onto Maria's face. "We slept together, but then I think I caught him off guard by pretty much telling him it was all or nothing, and I didn't want to be messed around anymore."

"And?"

"And he agreed." She squealed. "He said we should make a go of things. We're going to take it seriously, no messing around." The redhead's grin only got broader. "I know I've said this like, a gazillion times before, but I've got a _really_ good feeling about it this time-"

"Guys, come outside! Come outside!" Maria was cut off mid-sentence by Alicia bursting into the kitchen breathlessly. She rarely barged into the house, unless something very important was happening. "You've _got_ to see this."

* * *

The small strip of road was mostly blocked off by a large moving van parked outside Maryse's house, as delivery men of all shapes and sizes were lifting large paintings and pieces of furniture into the van. The three girls looked on in shock.

"Close your mouths ladies; it's not an attractive look." Maryse crossed the street, approaching her former friends, giving off some serious flashbacks to the time they first met.

"You're moving?" Alicia asked, signalling at the moving van. "Where are you going?"

"I feel sorry for whichever town ends up with her." Eve commented, still bitter over Maryse's attempts to break up her and Randy.

"I'm bored; this city's getting dull." Maryse responded, ignoring Eve's last comment. "Everyone said L.A would steal my heart, but my heart is still firmly in place."

"Are you sure it's not because everyone found out what a lying, scheming bitch you are?" Eve asked sweetly.

"So where are you going?" Alicia repeated.

"I got a job offer in New York, and I thought now was as good a time as any to take it." Maryse paused, a sour look filling her face. "I'm sure you three are ecstatic."

"I am." Eve spoke up, as neither Maria nor Alicia said anything. "You pretty much attempted to ruin all of our relationships, and it backfired on you. You're an idiot. You lost your boyfriend, your friends, and you lost everyone's respect."

"Am I supposed to be upset?" Maryse scoffed, looking at the three ladies in front of her. "I don't need your respect. I'm moving onto bigger and better things, and when you see Maryse Ouellet headlining a Victoria's Secret fashion show, you'll be the ones that will feel like idiots."

They watched as Maryse got into the driver's seat of her black Mercedes Benz and fired up the engine. It wasn't long before she was speeding down the road, and speeding off to her new life.

* * *

"Do you think we'll ever see her again?" Maria asked, Popsicle in hand, as the three girls squeezed in around the black iron table.

"I doubt it." Alicia smirked. "You heard her. She's moving on to 'bigger and better things'. Besides, I doubt she'll ever want to come back."

"You never told us how the wedding went yesterday." Maria looked at Alicia. "Did they actually go through with it?"

"They did." Alicia paused. "But now, they're getting a divorce."

"Divorce?" Eve exclaimed. "What happened?"

"I found Adam outside with another woman, and I told Vickie everything about me and Adam and that he'd cheated again." Alicia's face filled with sadness. "She told him it was over, and she was filing for a divorce. She was distraught, but how could I not tell her? She has a right."

"She deserves to know." Maria agreed. "Did she forgive you?"

"Well, I'm not exactly going to be going for coffee with her, but there's no bad blood." Alicia shrugged.

The table was filled with an almost silence, as all that could be heard was the sound of Maria sucking on her popsicle and Eve's nails tapping at the iron.

"So, what's going to happen now?" Alicia spoke up. "Do you think everything's going to return to normal?"

"Yes." Maria said. "Well, yes and no."

Eve interjected. "I have a feeling things are looking up from here on."

"Really?" Alicia questioned, however no-one answered, as everyone treasured the rare silence in LA. When you're with the people you care about the most, talking isn't always needed.

Just having your friends there is sometimes enough.

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Thank you to everyone who's read _Our City_, and consistantly reviewed and enjoyed the story :)  
I'd also like to thank _MissMikkiMouse._ The idea of a collective group chapter was taken from her story _The Great Escape _(If you haven't already read it, you **definitely**should, as IMO, it's one of the best stories on !)  
As usual, please leave a review and tell me what you thought of the story. I'd love feedback :)  
Thanks again, Melissa XX


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